Depression in chronic combat reaction

Abstract

This is a study of depressive features in 51 Iranian combatants suffering from PTSD. DSM III-R considers depressive symptoms as associated clinical features of this condition. DSM III and DSM III-R both accepted the strong evidence that PTSD is a form of anxiety and included it in the anxiety disorders category. It is true that many PTSD sufferers present with anxiety features similar to these present in generalized anxiety disorder (The same authors reported anxiety features in 94% of Iranian combatants 1991), but this similarity is true: For depressive features, 92% was found in present study. The findings are discussed in relation to previous studies of combat-related PTSD, both done in Iran or elsewhere.