| Upward trends in symptom reporting in the UK Armed Forces. | |
| | |
MedLine Citation:
|
PMID: 20024604 Owner: NLM Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
|
Several reports have shown increases in the prevalence of non-specific symptoms in the general population. Research in the military tends to focus on comparisons between deployed and non-deployed personnel and does not examine trends over time. 4,257 and 4,295 male participants of the Gulf war and Iraq war studies not deployed to either of these wars were randomly sampled and surveyed in 1997/1998 and 2004/2006 in two independent cross-sectional studies. Information was collected on 50 symptoms and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). Factor analysis was performed to identify an underlying pattern of symptom dimensions, and multivariate regressions were carried out to examine changes in symptom dimensions between the two surveys and the possible role of psychological morbidity. Factor analysis identified a robust pattern of eight symptom dimensions. An increase in the prevalence of symptoms was evident across all symptom dimensions. Adjustment for demographic and service characteristics revealed increases in the odds of scoring highly on symptom dimensions, varying from odds ratios 1.57, 95% CI 1.36-1.81 (cardio-respiratory dimension) to 2.24, 95% CI 1.93-2.60 (fatigue dimension). Unexpectedly, increases were even greater when adjusting for psychological morbidity. There is clear evidence of an increase in the reporting of non-specific symptoms over a 7 year period in the UK Armed Forces. It suggests that the threshold for reporting symptoms has decreased and cannot be explained by psychological distress. The possible implication of this trend for medical practice in the wider population deserves close scrutiny. |
| | |
Authors:
|
Oded Horn; Andrew Sloggett; George B Ploubidis; Lisa Hull; Matthew Hotopf; Simon Wessely; Roberto J Rona |
Related Documents
:
|
4016444 - Psychological profile of the spouse of the female agoraphobic patient. personality and ... 21407884 - Genital self amputation for urinary symptom relief or suicide? 17923294 - Long-term follow-up evaluation of bilateral total hand loss. 19875394 - Neuropsychological function 5 years after cardiac surgery and the effect of psychologic... 14752074 - Effect of a cognitive behavioral intervention on reducing symptom severity during chemo... 21818274 - Characteristics and treatment preferences of people with symptoms of posttraumatic stre... |
Publication Detail:
|
Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Date: 2009-12-19 |
Journal Detail:
|
Title: European journal of epidemiology Volume: 25 ISSN: 1573-7284 ISO Abbreviation: Eur. J. Epidemiol. Publication Date: 2010 Feb |
Date Detail:
|
Created Date: 2010-02-15 Completed Date: 2010-05-17 Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
|
Nlm Unique ID: 8508062 Medline TA: Eur J Epidemiol Country: Netherlands |
Other Details:
|
Languages: eng Pagination: 87-94 Citation Subset: IM |
Affiliation:
|
King's Centre for Military Health Research, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, UK. oded.horn@iop.kcl.ac.uk |
Export Citation:
|
APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex |
| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
|
Adult Bosnia-Herzegovina Cross-Sectional Studies Factor Analysis, Statistical Great Britain / epidemiology Gulf War Health Status* Health Status Indicators Humans Iraq War, 2003 - Male Middle Aged Military Personnel / psychology, statistics & numerical data* Prevalence Regression Analysis Somatoform Disorders / epidemiology*, psychology Stress, Psychological / epidemiology Young Adult |
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
Previous Document: Can iron be teratogenic?
Next Document: Evidence for cross-talk between atrial natriuretic peptide and nitric oxide receptors.