Southwick, S.M. et al. Trauma Related Symptoms in Veterans of Operation Desert Storm: A 2-year Follow-Up. AmJ Psychiatry 1995; 152: 1150-1155.

This paper reports on the continuation of a study of 84 soldiers from two National Guard units (one medical, one military police) who had served in the GW. Sixty two of the original 84 who were evaluated at one and six months completed evaluations at 2 years. Depending upon the diagnostic criterion used, six or eight veterans met the criteria for PTSD at 2 years. Mean PTSD scores were higher after two years, particularly in the medical unit. Most PTSD-specific symptoms had developed by six months. Scores for symptoms related to hyperarousal (especially startle responses, sleep disturbance, and irritability) were significantly higher than scores for symptoms associated with reexperiencing or avoidance. Limitations of the study were the incompleteness of the study group, dropouts at two years, reliance on self-reports, and a tendency for subjects to underreport symptoms.