Psychopathology and psychiatric diagnoses of World War II Pacific theater prisoner of War survivors and combat veterans

Objective: This study assessed current and long-term psychological and psychiatric sequelae of war trauma in World War II Pacific theater combat veterans, some of whom had been japanese prisoners of war (POWs). Method A group of 36 POW survivors and a group of 29 combat veterans, all of whom had seen fierce fighting and heavy unit casualties, were compared approximately 40 years later on psychological instruments assessing psychopathology constructs, negative mood states, and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and on the computer-administered National Institute of Mental Health Diagnostic Interview Schedule