A survey of common prevalent psychiatric disorders among a group of Iranian repatriated prisoners of war

Abstract

The present survey covers a number of 91 Iranian repatriated war prisoners who, six months after their freedom, approached three psychiatric clinics in Tehran during 1989 and spring 1990. Of these, 34 persons (37.4%) who showed higher symptoms of disorders were hospitalized and 57 (62.6%) who showed milder signs of disorders were carefully diagnosed mentally and psychologically as outpatients. The prevalent disorders revealed by this study were adjustment disorders (48.3%), mood disorders (22%), schizophrenia (11%), anxiety disorder (9.9%) and organic mental disorders (7.7%). The survey showed statistically the existence of a meaningful relation between the disorder severity with such factors as negative opinion of the prisoner's family on his going to the war front, and observance of martyrdom of co-fighters by the patient. However, no significant relation was observed between the severity of disorders and such factors as being involuntarily dispatched to the front, duration of captivity, type of being captive (singular or in group), having a previous record of solitary imprisonment, observing the treason of co-fighters during his captivity.