Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-v9fdk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-03T08:40:54.045Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

“War neurosis” and associated physical conditions: an exploratory statistical analysis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 June 2014

Ian P Burges Watson ,
George V Wilson  and
Helen Hornsby
Ian P Burges Watson*
Affiliation:
Dept. of Psychiatry, University of Tasmaniaand Visiting Specialist, Repatriation General Hospital, Hobart
George V Wilson
Affiliation:
Dept. of Psychology, University of Tasmania
Helen Hornsby
Affiliation:
Dept. of Psychology, University of Tasmania
*
*14 Willowbend Road, Kingston, Tasmania, Australia7050
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Records of the war service disability claims for Australian Vietnam veterans in Tasmania (n = 751) were analysed to establish patterns of interrelationships between categories of disability. The predicted relationship between psychiatric disability and stress related skin disabilities was strongly supported and relationships between psychiatric and other medical disabilities were found. An exploratory principal components analysis produced three independent components which accounted for 21.2 percent of total variance. Component 1 was interpreted as a general military service component and components 2 and 3 were labelled as stress components. The most likely interpretation of the two stress components was that they reflect differences in profiles of records for disability claims depending on the time when the disability presented. The relevance of the findings is discussed.

Keywords

Stress DisordersPost-traumaticVeteran Disability ClaimsPsychosomatic MedicineComorbidityMultivariate Analysis
Type
Original Papers
Information
Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine , Volume 9 , Issue 1 , May 1992 , pp. 30 - 36
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1992

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.Kardiner, A. Spiegel, H. War stress and neurotic illness. New York: Paul B. Hoeber, 1947.Google Scholar
2.Andreasen, NC. Posttraumatic stress disorder. In: Kaplan, HI, Freedman, AM, Sadock, BJ, editors. Comprehensive textbook of psychiatry, vol 2. 3rd ed. Baltimore/London: Williams & Wilkins, 1980: chapter 21. 1d.Google Scholar
3.Trimble, MR. Post-traumatic neurosis. From railway spine to the whiplash. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, 1981.Google Scholar
4.Lonnum, A. Delayed disease and ill-health – a sequelae of extreme stresses during war and disaster. Oslo: The Norwegian Association of Disabled Veterans, 1969.Google Scholar
5.Beebe, G. Follow-up studies of World War II and Korean War prisoners. II Morbidity, disability and maladjustments. Am J Epidemiology 1975; 101 (5); 400–422.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6.American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 3rd ed (DSM-III). Washington DC: APA, 1980.Google Scholar
7.American Psychiatric Association. The diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. 3rd rev ed (DSM-III-R). Washington DC: APA, 1987.Google Scholar
8.Lipton, MI, Schaffer, WR. Physical symptoms related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in an aging population. Military Medicine 1988; 153: 316–318.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
9.Patrick, DL, Heaf, PJD. Long-term effects of war-related deprivation of health: study sponsored by the British Members Council of the World Veterans' Federation. Haverhill, England: Panda Press (Anglia), 1981.Google Scholar
10.White, P, Faustman, W. Coexisting physical conditions among inpatients with post-traumatic stress disorder. Military Medicine 1989; 154(2): 66–71.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
11.Eitinger, L. A follow-up study of the Norwegian concentration camp survivors' mortality and morbidity. The Isreal Annals of Psychiatry and Related Disciplines 1973; 11(3): 199–209.Google ScholarPubMed
12.Wolf, ME, Alavi, A, Mosnaim, AD. Pain, dermatological and allergic conditions in post traumatic stress disorder. Research Communications in Psychology, Psychiatry and Behavior 1988; 13(3): 237–240.Google Scholar
13.Hughes, JE, Barraclough, BM, Hamblin, LLG, White, JE. Psychiatric symptoms in dermatology patients. Br J Psychiatry 1983; 143: 51–54.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14.Koblenzer, C. Psychocutaneous disease. Orlando, Florida: Grune & Stratton, 1987.Google Scholar
15.Pichot, P. A century of psychiatry. Paris: Editions Roger Dacosta, 1983.Google Scholar
16.Burges Watson, IP. The hypothalamic/pituitary/adrenal axis revisited. Stress Medicine 1988; 5: 141–143.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
17.Blalock, JE. A molecular basis for bidirectional communication between the immune and neuroendocrine systems. Psychological Reviews 1989; 69: 1–32.Google ScholarPubMed
18.Perez, M, Farrant, J. Immune reactions and mental disorders [editorial]. Psychol Med 1988; 18: 11–13.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
19.Krueger, GG, Stingl, G. Immunology/inflammation of the skin – a 50-year perspective. Journal of Investigative Dermatology 1989 04; 92(4 Supple): 32S–51S.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
20.Sauder, DN. Interleukin 1. Arch Dermatol 1989; 125: 679–682.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
21.Lucky, AW. Androgens and the skin. Arch Dermatol 1987; 123: 193–195.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
22.SPSS Inc. SPSSX user's guide. 2nd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1986.Google Scholar
23.Gorsuch, RL. Factor analysis. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, 1983.Google Scholar
24.Ellard, J. Did schizophrenia exist before the eighteenth century? Aust NZJ Psychiatry 1987; 21: 306–314.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
25.Levy, CJ. Agent orange exposure and posttraumatic stress disorder. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 1988; 176, 4: 242–245.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
26.Evatt, The Hon. Mr.Justice, P Commissioner. Final report of the royal commission on the use and effects of chemical agents on Australian personnel in Vietnam, vol. 8. Conclusions, recommendations and epilogue. Canberra: AGPS, 1985.Google Scholar
27.Davis, DB, Bick, JW. Skin reactions observed under wartime stress. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 1946; 503–598.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
28.Rasmussen, JE. Psychosomatic dermatology. Arch Dermatol 1990; 126: 90–93.Google Scholar
29.Newsholme, E. Psychoimmunology and cellular nutrition. An alternative hypothesis. Biological Psychiatry 1990; 27: 1–3.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
30.Stellman, SD, Stellman, JM, Sommer, JF. Health and reproductive outcomes among American legionnaires in relation to combat and herbicide exposure in Vietnam. Environmental Research 1988; 47: 150–174.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
31.Stellman, JM, Stellman, SD, Sommer, JF. Social and behavioral consequences of the Vietnam experience among American legionnaires. Environmental Research 1988; 47: 129–149.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
32.Tennant, C, Streimer, JH, Temperly, H. Memories of Vietnam: post-traumatic stress disorders in Australian veterans. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 1990; 24(1): 29–36.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
33.Eitinger, L. Health study of ex-POWs in USA. WISMIC Newsletter 1990; 2(2): 11–14.Google Scholar
34.Goldstein, G, van Kammen, W, Shelly, C, Miller, DJ, van Kammer, DP. Survivors of imprisonment in the Pacific theater during World War II. Am J Psychiatry 1977; 144; 9: 1210–1213.Google Scholar
35.Langer, R. Post-traumatic stress disorder in former POWs. In: Williams, T, editor. Post-traumatic stress disorder: a handbook for clinicians. Cincinnati, Ohio: Disabled American Veterans' National Headquarters, 1987.Google Scholar
36.Speed, N, Engdahl, B, Schwartz, J & Eberly, R. Posttraumatic stress disorder as a consequence of the POW experience. Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases 1989; 177 (3): 147–153.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
37.Veterans' Administration. The pḥysician's guide for disability evaluation and examination. Washington: Dept. of Medicine & Surgery, 1985.Google Scholar
38.Buydens-Branchey, L, Noumair, D, Branchey, M. Duration and intensity of combat exposure and posttraumatic stress disorder in Vietnam veterans. J Nerv Ment Dis 1990; 178 (9): 582–587.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
39.Kulka, RA, Schlenger, WE, Fairbank, JA, Hough, RL, Jordan, BK, Marmar, CR, Weiss, DS. National Vietnam veterans readjustment study (NVVRS): description, current status, and initial PTSD prevalence estimates. Submitted to the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs as testimony of the oversight hearing on post-traumatic stress disorder, 07 1988.Google Scholar
40.Goldberg, J, True, WR, Eisen, SA, Henderson, WG. A twin study of the effects of the Vietnam War on posttraumatic stress disorder. JAMA 1990; 263, 9: 1227–1232.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
41.Selye, H. The stress of life. Rev ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 1976.Google Scholar
42.Pennebaker, JW, Barger, SD, Tiebout, J. Disclosure of traumas and health among holocaust survivors. Psychosomatic Medicine 1989; 51: 577–589.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
43.Sparr, LF. Victims and survivors. Current Opinion in Psychiatry 1989; 2(6): 754–763.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
44.Barbaccia, ML, Brocklehurst, KW, Grayson, DR, Krueger, KE, Majewska, MD, Manev, H. Neurosteroids: dawn of a new concept. Neuroscience Facts 1990 11 22; 1(6): 1.Google Scholar