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Prisoner of war status, posttraumatic stress disorder, and dementia in older veterans.
Published Web Location
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1552526014001320?via%3DihubNo data is associated with this publication.
Abstract
Background
It is not known whether prisoners of war (POWs) are more likely to develop dementia independently of the effects of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).Methods
We performed a retrospective cohort study in 182,879 U.S. veterans age 55 years and older, and examined associations between POW status and PTSD at baseline (October 1, 2000-September 30, 2003), and incident dementia during follow-up (October 1, 2003-September 30, 2012).Results
A total of 484 veterans (0.3%) reported being POWs, of whom 150 (31.0%) also had PTSD. After adjusting for demographics, medical and psychiatric comorbidities, period of service, and the competing risk of death, the risk of dementia was increased in veterans who were POWs only (hazard ratio [HR], 1.61; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.30-1.98) or had PTSD only (HR, 1.52; 95% CI, 1.41-1.64) and was greatest in veterans who were POWs and also had PTSD (HR, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.72-2.92).Conclusions
POW status and PTSD increase risk of dementia in an independent, additive manner in older veterans.Many UC-authored scholarly publications are freely available on this site because of the UC's open access policies. Let us know how this access is important for you.