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Long-Term Effects of Chemical Warfare on Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, and Chronic Medical Conditions in Veterans

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Abstract

We investigated the association between exposure to chemical warfare and chronic mental/physical conditions. This was a secondary analysis of data from a case–control study on Iranian male veterans. Participants with neuropsychiatric disorders other than depressive/anxiety disorders, anatomical defects, or malignancies were excluded. Compared to non-exposed veterans, exposed veterans demonstrated significantly higher odds of PTSD [OR (95% CI) = 5.23 (1.98–13.85)], hypertension [OR (95% CI) = 5.57 (1.68–18.48)], coronary heart disease [OR (95% CI) = 6.8 (1.62–28.49)], and diabetes [OR (95% CI) = 3.88 (1.35–11.16)], and marginally higher odds of moderate to severe depressive symptoms [OR (95% CI) = 2.21 (0.93–5.28)]. This study provides preliminary evidence on association of exposure to chemical warfare with long-term mental disorders as well as chronic medical conditions.

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Funding

The study was supported by a grant from Aja University of Medical Sciences to Dr. Ehsan Moazen-Zadeh (Grant No. 7648).

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Author notes

  1. Hamideh Safi-Aghdam and Mehrzad Shafie have contributed equally in this study.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Psychiatric Research Center, Roozbeh Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, South Kargar Street, Tehran, 13337, Iran

    Hamideh Safi-Aghdam & Ehsan Moazen-Zadeh

  2. Mental Health Research Center, Tehran Institute of Psychiatry, School of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Mehrzad Shafie & Arash Rahmani

  3. Modern Epidemiology Research Center, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Alireza Khoshdel & Ehsan Moazen-Zadeh

  4. Faculty of Aerospace and Diving Medicine, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Farhad Avakh

Authors
  1. Hamideh Safi-Aghdam
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  2. Mehrzad Shafie
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  3. Alireza Khoshdel
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  4. Ehsan Moazen-Zadeh
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  5. Farhad Avakh
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  6. Arash Rahmani
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ehsan Moazen-Zadeh.

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The authors of this study declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Safi-Aghdam, H., Shafie, M., Khoshdel, A. et al. Long-Term Effects of Chemical Warfare on Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, and Chronic Medical Conditions in Veterans. Community Ment Health J 55, 493–496 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-018-0277-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-018-0277-1

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