Katie Couric's Notebook: Hidden Wounds Of War
Video: As we mark the anniversary of the Iraq war, we're being reminded of all that our soldiers have sacrificed -- and what some continue to suffer. The scandal at Walter Reed put that suffering into sharp focus.
And so has a new study from the Archives of Internal Medicine.
The study found that about A THIRD of returning veterans were diagnosed with mental illness or a psycho-social disorder -- everything from depression and post-traumatic stress...to homelessness and domestic violence. The HIGHEST rate of mental problems is among the YOUNGEST -- soldiers between 18 and 24.
The doctor who conducted the study says the numbers may eventually surpass those from Vietnam.
Bobby Muller, a Vietnam Veteran and president of Veterans for America, says "we haven't even begun to understand the magnitude of this."
Attention, he says, must be paid.
Unless we want a lost generation, I agree.
That's a page from my notebook.