Mental health disorders and alcohol misuse among UK military veterans and the general population: a comparison study.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional comparative analysis linking separate cohort and survey databases
PubMed 32777197 · doi:10.1017/S0033291720001944
What was done
Researchers compared the prevalence of common mental disorders (CMD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and alcohol misuse in UK military veterans who served during recent operations in Afghanistan or Iraq against non-veteran controls. Veteran data came from phase 3 of the King's Centre for Military Health Research cohort (n = 2,917). Non-veteran general population data were drawn from the 2014 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey (n = 5,871) and wave 6 of the UK Household Longitudinal Study (n = 22,760).
What was found
Overall, UK veterans had a significantly higher prevalence of CMD (23% vs. 16%), PTSD (8% vs. 5%), and alcohol misuse (11% vs. 6%) than non-veterans. Gender stratification showed this disadvantage was restricted to male veterans. Being ill or disabled was associated with higher prevalence of CMD and PTSD in both veterans and non-veterans.
Why it matters
This provides the first direct comparison of contemporary UK military veterans with the UK general population, identifying male veterans as experiencing elevated mental health burdens and alcohol misuse compared to non-serving peers.
Limits
The study is cross-sectional and combines separate survey datasets with potentially different sampling methods and measurement contexts. The veteran sample is restricted to those serving during recent operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, so findings may not generalize to veterans of other eras.
Cited by
- supports Military veterans suffer from PTSD at approximately twice the rate of the general population.