James Lisa M, Strom Thad Q, Leskela Jennie
Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Health Care System, One Veterans Drive, Minneapolis, MN 55417.
Mil Med. 2014 Apr;179(4):357-63. doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-13-00241.
Military personnel commonly experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), both of which are associated with premature mortality. The present study examined two factors that may play a role in premature mortality--impulsivity and risk-taking behaviors--in a sample of 234 veterans screening positive for PTSD, mTBI, PTSD + mTBI, and controls. Analyses of variance demonstrated that veterans with PTSD, regardless of mTBI status, reported engaging in more frequent risky behaviors and reported a greater tendency to engage in impulsive behaviors when in a negative affective state. They also reported more premilitary delinquent behaviors and more suicide-related behaviors than controls. The present study highlights associations between impulsivity, risk-taking behaviors, and PTSD, and suggests continuity across the lifespan in terms of a predisposition to engage in impulsive and/or risky behaviors. Thorough evaluation of impulsivity and potentially risky behaviors is important in clinical settings to guide interventions and reduce the mortality and public health impact of high-risk behaviors in veterans.
军事人员常经历创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）和轻度创伤性脑损伤（mTBI），这两者都与过早死亡有关。本研究在234名PTSD、mTBI、PTSD + mTBI筛查呈阳性的退伍军人及对照组样本中，考察了可能在过早死亡中起作用的两个因素——冲动性和冒险行为。方差分析表明，患有PTSD的退伍军人，无论mTBI状况如何，报告称从事更频繁的冒险行为，并且在处于负面情绪状态时报告有更大的冲动行为倾向。他们还报告了比对照组更多的入伍前犯罪行为和更多与自杀相关的行为。本研究突出了冲动性、冒险行为与PTSD之间的关联，并表明在从事冲动和/或冒险行为的易感性方面存在终生连续性。在临床环境中，对冲动性和潜在冒险行为进行全面评估对于指导干预措施以及降低退伍军人中高风险行为的死亡率和公共卫生影响至关重要。
