Comorbidities with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among combat veterans: 15 years postwar analysis

The aim of this study was to investigate the differences in the prevalence of somatic diseases among combat veterans and their contemporaries who were not exposed to the traumatic experience at the battlefield, and to determine whether socio-demographic factors, exposure to war-time trauma and/or injury might predict individual somatic diseases. The study included 1,558 subjects living in south Croatia: 501 male combat veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the corresponding control group of 825 men who were not exposed to combat experience. Veterans with PTSD, regardless of the length of time spent in war, suffered more often from cardiovascular, dermatological, musculoskeletal, pulmonary and metabolic diseases than corresponding control subjects who were not exposed to combat experience. The predictors of cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and malignant diseases in veterans were age, length of time spent in combat, having been wounded. A longer period in the combat zone was associated with arrhythmias in veterans with PTSD complicated with other psychiatric comorbidities. PTSD as a result of exposure to war trauma increases the possibility of developing somatic diseases.

The Croatian version of diagnostic interview for genetic studies

Diagnostic Interview for Genetic Studies (DIGS) is a modern structured interview schedule that has been in use since 1994. Main purpose of the DIGS is to record information regarding to a subject's functioning and psychopathology and it was specifically designed for psychiatric genetic studies. The DIGS is also suitable for making diagnosis, evaluation of comorbidity and other researches. It contents items and sections and has a semi-structured design that gives interviewers the freedom needed to extract the best in formation possible. The validity of a Croatian version of the DIGS was investigated. The original English version was initially translated into Croatian. The Croatian version was then back-translated and compared with the original. In this paper we will describe each item that DIGS contents as well as the use of this diagnostic instrument.

Self-perception of drug abusers and addicts and investigators' perception of etiological factors of psychoactive drug addiction

The aim of this study was to compare investigators' perception of three most important etiological factors for drug addiction and drug abuse with the self-perception of heroin addicts and drug abusers who used cannabis products and/or ecstasy. The study included 207 heroin addicts (mean age, 26.7 +/- 5.8 years) and 238 drug abusers (mean age, 19.3 +/- 1.9 years). Each study participant selected the three most important etiological factors for drug addiction or drug abuse from the list in the Pompidou questionnaire according to his or her perception. An investigator also selected the three most important etiological factors for drug addiction or abuse according to his or her perception for each study participant. The self-selected factors were compared with those selected by the investigators. Heroin addicts most often selected hedonism as the first (n = 97 [46.9%]) and the second (n = 87 [42.0%]) most important factor for starting using drugs, whereas family reasons were most often selected as the third most important factor (n = 58 [28.0%]). Cannabis and ecstasy abusers most frequently selected hedonism as the first (n = 149 [62.6%]), second (n = 128 [53.8%]), and third (n = 76 [31.9%]) most important factor for starting using drugs. According to investigators' perception, family reasons were the first most important etiologic factor in both heroin addicts (n = 93 [44.9%]) and drug abusers (n = 144 [60.5%]). Psychological reasons were significantly more often selected as the first most important factor for heroin addiction than for cannabis or ecstasy abuse by both participants and investigators (P < 0.001 for both). Also, according to investigators' perception, the lack of knowledge was significantly more frequent as the second most important factor in heroin addicts than in cannabis or ecstasy abusers (55 [26.6%] vs 19 [8.0%], respectively; P < 0.001). Drug addicts and drug abusers considered hedonism the most important reason for starting drug use, whereas investigators considered family reasons to be the primary reason. Both factors seemed to play the crucial role in the development of both drug addiction and drug abuse.