Nearly 1 In 5 Vets Reports Mental Problems

(CBS/AP)  Roughly one in five U.S. troops is suffering from major depression or post-traumatic stress from serving in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and an equal number have suffered brain injuries, a new study estimates.

Only about half of them have sought treatment, says the study released Thursday by the Rand Corp.

A recently completed survey showed 18.5 percent - or 300,000 people - said they have symptoms of depression or PTSD, the researchers said. Nineteen percent - or 320,000 - suffered head injuries ranging from mild concussions to penetrating head wounds.

"There is a major health crisis facing those men and women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan," said Terri Tanielian, the project's co-leader and a researcher at the nonprofit Rand.

"Unless they receive appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions, there will be long-term consequences for them and for the nation," she said in a statement.

The 500-page study is the first large-scale, private assessment of its kind - including a survey of 1,965 service members across the country, from all branches of the armed forces and including those still in the military as well veterans who have left the services.

Its results appear consistent with a number of mental health reports from within the government, though the Defense Department has not released the number of people it has diagnosed or who are being treated for mental problems.

The Department of Veterans Affairs said this month that its records show about 120,000 who served in the two wars and are no longer in the military have been diagnosed with mental health problems. Of those, approximately 60,000 are suffering from PTSD, the VA said.

In December, CBS News correspondent Kimberly Dozier reported that veterans' advocates say symptoms of PTSD - from substance-abuse to rage to suicidal depression - are misdiagnosed or blamed on the troops themselves.

Veterans Affairs is responsible for care of service members after they have left the service, while the Defense Department covers active duty and reservist needs.

The lack of numbers from the Pentagon was one motivation for the Rand study, Tanielian said in an interview.

The most prominent and detailed military study on mental health on the war that is released regularly to the public is the Army's survey of soldiers at the battlefield. Officials said last month that it's most recent one, done last fall, found 18.2 percent of soldiers suffered a mental health problem such as depression, anxiety or acute stress in 2007 compared with 20.5 percent the previous year.

Other studies have variously estimated that 10 percent to 20 percent had symptoms of mental health problems

The Rand survey done from August through January, put the percentage of PTSD and depression at 18.5 percent and then calculated about 300,000 were suffering those problems at that time because Pentagon data shows over 1.6 million military personnel have deployed to the conflicts since the war in Afghanistan began in 2001.

Col. Loree Sutton, who heads a new Pentagon center on brain injury, welcomed the Rand study, saying it will add to the work defense officials are doing. That includes improving and expanding training, research and mental health staff.

She said officials have been working to add thousands more mental health professionals to help the uniformed psychiatrists, psychologists and others struggling to meet the wartime demands of troops and their families. Across the services, officials are trying to hire over 1,000 additional staff, companies providing health care by contract to the Pentagon have added over 3,000 in the last year and the U.S. Public Health Service has provided some 200, she said. The veterans department also has added some 3,800 professionals in the last couple of years, officials there said.

Rand researchers also found:

About 7 percent reported both a probable brain injury and current PTSD or major depression.

Only 43 percent reported ever being evaluated by a physician for their head injuries.

Only 53 percent of service members with PTSD or depression sought help over the past year.

They gave various reasons for not getting help, including that they worried about the side effects of medication; believe family and friends could help them with the problem, or that they feared seeking care might damage their careers.

Rates of PTSD and major depression were highest among women and reservists.

The report is titled "Invisible Wounds of War: Psychological and Cognitive Injuries, Their Consequences, and Services to Assist Recovery." It was sponsored by a grant from the California Community Foundation and done by 25 researchers from Rand Health and the Rand National Security Research Division, which also has done does work under contracts with the Pentagon and other defense agencies as well as allied foreign governments and foundations.

[lindaredtail]

To Daine71 I don''t know if you will come back on here but if you do I would like to thank you and your family for the sacrifice you have made. It is not right that the same people be deployed time and time again. This President has terrible judgment, and makes nonsensical decisions. It''s him we''re criticizing and his policies not your husband or the other soldiers. And they should be treated like Kings and get all the assistance they need for the rest of their lives.

[pastdue1]

This consequence of Bush''s war will, in the end, prove to be the most long-lasting, expensive, devastating and heartbreaking aspect of this war. And, unfortunately for the American, military and civilian, the administration still fails to recognize that it is a direct consequence of their "fly by the seat of your pants" stategy..
Should anyone really listen to Bush? What he says is to protect the American people has proven to further endanger our lives. What he says will protect and improve our economy has forced us into a recession, and possibly, a depression. What he contends furthers our influence in the world has isolated us and downgraded our reputation throughout the globe. Can anyone doubt that he has a serious judgement problem, both with his own judgement and with his ability to choose capable advisors. He continues to play Russian Roulette with America''s young soldiers.

[daine71]

Also to someone that posted that the soldiers volunteered for this is wrong. They enlisted in the military but to be deployed every other year is just to much. There is a point when to much is just to much. When our National Guard has to be brought in to fight a full war then something is really wrong. My husband has been deployed for a year after 9/11 and then for all the hurricanes and now he''s in Iraq. It''s not right. I can understand "homeland" security but fighting a war just because we don''t have enough military to do it just proves our president didn''t think things thru and look at where it has got us. And now our government can''t even take care of our soldiers.

[daine71]

I think it''s awful how people on this blog have talked so uncaring of our military. They should all be taken care of and treated like kings. I also think another reason for these problems is that Bush has over extended our military so much that they have lowered their standards of the people they allow into the military.

[gostmachine]

As an Israeli I want to thank all the American''s who are fighting this war for us. We couldn''t have done it ourselves. PTSD SchmPTSD. As long as it is good for Israel. I hate to see so many Americans fighting among themselves, but hey... it works for us. Have a nice day.

[lindaredtail]

It is another fallacy that has been perpetrated that people who oppose the war do not support the troops. I not only support the troops I have the highest regard and respect for the soldier in the field.I believe that those serving in Afghanistan and Iraq are deserving of all honor and respect. I thank them for their service and the sacrifices they make for our nation. But when I think about those sacrifices I know this. 1. They should be made based on solid facts and evidence. 2. They should not be made over a commander-in-chief''s personal belief system. 3. They should not be made over a political party''s platform. 4. They should not be made for financial gain or oil. 5. They should not be a tool for American corporate interests. The sacrifices those troops make should be for clear and powerful reasons. The waters of the Iraq war are muddy. The price our people are paying is too high.

[singingrick]

Don''t worry vets. Bush is sending you a shiny new "support our troops" bumper sticker in the mail courtesy of the RNC. Thanks for voting Republican America!

[edward1975-2009]

In the days that I served, we didn''t have the ability to use the internet. I can only imagine what todays soldier must feel, thousands of mile from home and reading some of the trash posted about them, their commander in chief, and the mission they have been charged to carry out, how depressing it must all be. We are able to dicuss these things with no fear of retribution, because of those who have answered the call past , present and future. Think about that.

[lemonskink]

WOW, looks like they are taking after the Commander in Chief.

[lucasnico]

To show you''''re support instead of whinning about the war, please come to www.theoandavirus.com.

Support the troops, and stop being human scum.

Well, gailcummings, it''s hard to have a rational exchange with an angry six year old.....go sit in the corner until you can apologize....something this administration also needs to do.