Childhood factors and war zone stress in chronic PTSD

This study assessed the predictive validity of combat factors and selected premilitary variables (i.e., childhood physical abuse, substance abuse in the family of origin, or being raised in a nonadaptive or noncohesive family) on posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) group membership. In addition, it assessed the correlation of combat exposure and selected premilitary variables with the severity of PTSD symptomology. Ninety-three male Vietnam combat veterans with PTSD were compared to 82 male Vietnam combat veterans without the disorder. The results of two hierarchical logit analyses identified combat exposure as the best predictor of PTSD group membership. However, physical punishment was also found to significantly predict group membership when entered first in the analyses. Furthermore, multiple regression analyses conducted with the PTSD group alone found that both combat exposure and physical abuse predicted greater PTSD symptomology. These findings suggest that childhood physical abuse as well as military trauma should be addressed in the assessment and treatment of chronic PTSD patients.