ArticleDeutsches Arzteblatt international2012
Traumatic experiences and posttraumatic stress disorder in soldiers following deployment abroad: how big is the hidden problem?
Article in Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 39 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
39 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 94 citations in OpenAlex.
- What work-related exposures are associated with post-traumatic stress disorder? A systematic review with meta-analysis.BMJ open · 2021Pooled it
- Coordinating Global Multi-Site Studies of Military-Relevant Traumatic Brain Injury: Opportunities, Challenges, and Harmonization Guidelines.Brain imaging and behavior · 2021Pooled it
- Occupational Risk for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Trauma-Related Depression: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Pooled it
- Pharmacogenetics and Pharmacotherapy of Military Personnel Suffering from Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.Current neuropharmacology · 2017Pooled it
- The peer-led Honest, Open, Proud program to decrease the impact of mental illness stigma among German military personnel: randomized controlled trial.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Trial
- Evaluation of an internet-based intervention for service members of the German armed forces with deployment-related posttraumatic stress symptoms.BMC psychiatry · 2020Trial
- Western Models of PTSD Rehabilitation Among Military Veterans: A Narrative Comparative Review and Policy Implications for Israel.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Combining trauma therapy with computer-based neurocognitive training in soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder: a quasi-experimental study on symptom reduction and long-term memory functions.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Cumulative incidence of mental disorders in military personnel after 20 years of war in Afghanistan and 10 years in Mali - a comparison.European journal of psychotraumatology · 2025Article
- Psychological distress across the deployment cycle: comparing pre- and peri-pandemic trajectories.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Headache Management in Military Primary Care: Findings from a Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Difficulties with emotion regulation within PTSD clusters and moral injury subtypes.Military psychology : the official journal of the Division of Military Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2025Article
- Combat readiness, alcohol abuse, and posttraumatic stress disorder among Uganda peoples' defence forces soldiers.BMC psychology · 2024Article
- Prominent genetic variants and epigenetic changes in post-traumatic stress disorder among combat veterans.Molecular biology reports · 2024Review
- Differential methylation of linoleic acid pathway genes is associated with PTSD symptoms - a longitudinal study with Burundian soldiers returning from a war zone.Translational psychiatry · 2024Article
- Burnout and moral injuries after foreign deployment among medical personnel of the German armed forces: a pre-post study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Incidence of mental disorders in soldiers deployed to Afghanistan who have or have not experienced a life-threatening military incident-a quasi-experimental cohort study.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- [Analysis of Sickness-Related Days of Absence among Soldiers of the German Armed Forces from 2008 to 2018 Part 1: Retrospective Analysis with Comparison to the Statutory Health Insurance System].Gesundheitswesen (Bundesverband der Arzte des Offentlichen Gesundheitsdienstes (Germany)) · 2023Article
- Cross-sectional field study comparing hippocampal subfields in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder with comorbid major depressive disorder, and adjustment disorder using routine clinical data.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
- Examining bidirectional associations between perceived social support and psychological symptoms in the context of stressful event exposure: a prospective, longitudinal study.BMC psychiatry · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundLittle is known about the frequency of traumatic event exposure and the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among German soldiers serving in Afghanistan.
methodsWe studied a random sample consisting of 1599 soldiers who had served in the 2009/2010 ISAF mission in Afghanistan, stratified by deployment location and unit. Twelve months after their return to Germany, the soldiers were assessed with a Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) to establish the diagnoses of mental disorders and PTSD according to the DSM-IV. 889 similar soldiers who had not been deployed abroad were assessed in the same way.
results49.2% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 46.4 to 52.1) of the deployed soldiers experienced at least one traumatic event during their deployment, and 13% experienced more than three. The 12-month prevalence of PTSD among returning soldiers was 2.9% (95% CI: 2.1 to 4.1), while the service-related incidence after deployment was 0.9% (95% CI: 0.5 to 1.6). These figures imply a two- to fourfold elevation of the risk of PTSD. The risk of PTSD was highest among soldiers who had served in Kunduz (Afghanistan) and in combat units. Only half of all soldiers with PTSD sought professional help.
conclusionDeployment abroad is associated with a high frequency of traumatic experiences and a two- to fourfold elevation of the risk of PTSD. Each year, about 300 cases of PTSD develop for every 10 000 soldiers who return to Germany; thus, the cumulative number of returnees with PTSD from the beginning of German deployment abroad may currently run into the thousands. 45% of all PTSD cases, or about one in two, are neither diagnosed nor treated. Deployment abroad also substantially increases the risk of developing a number of other mental disorders.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.