U.S. soldiers who suffer a moderate or severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) are more likely to suffer other mental health woes than those with other serious injuries, a new study finds. It also showed that the rate of mental health disorders among seriously injured soldiers is much higher than previously reported.
Overall, 71% of the severely injured soldiers in the study were later diagnosed with at least one of five mental health conditions: post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and mood disorders, adjustment reactions, schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, and cognitive disorders.
Diagnoses for all five mental health conditions were higher among soldiers with TBI than among those with other severe injuries, according to the findings.The new study also found that the rate of PTSD is higher among soldiers with more severe TBI, not lower as reported in previous research.