Acute treatment records of all medical and surgical patients evacuated
to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., from the Persian
Gulf theater (N = 161) were examined to better understand the relationship
of injury to psychiatric symptoms. A total of 110 (68 percent) sustained a
traumatic injury. They were significantly more likely to have an axis I
disorder or psychiatric symptoms of concern than participants in the
Persian Gulf War who did not sustain traumatic injuries but who were
evacuated for medical conditions. The results indicate that traumatically
injured veterans are at greater risk of psychiatric symptoms than veterans
who are not injured and that they should be referred for psychiatric
evaluation.
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