Sharp increase in mental illness among US troops during 2007

Including Navy and Air Force cases, 39,366 members of the US military were officially diagnosed as suffering from the debilitating illness between January 1, 2003 and December 31, 2007, during their deployment in Iraq or Afghanistan.

The release of the figures follows testimony in March by Gerald Cross, Deputy Under Secretary for Veterans Health Administration, in a class action against the US government by Veterans for Common Sense and Veterans United for Truth. Cross testified that of 300,000 Afghanistan and Iraq veterans who had been treated in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities, half were diagnosed with a serious mental illness, including 68,000 with PTSD.

PTSD is defined as a common anxiety disorder that develops after exposure to a terrifying event or ordeal in which grave physical harm occurred or was threatened. Its symptomssuch as flashbacks, nervousness, insomnia and avoidance of contact with othershave been noted among soldiers returning from war for hundreds of years. Sufferers are prone to self-harm, ranging from suicide to substance abuse, as well as to outbursts of aggression against others.