TY - JOUR
T1 - Blast injury and chronic psychiatric disability in military personnel
T2 - Exploring the association beyond posttraumatic stress disorder
AU - Israel Trauma Group
AU - Epshtein, Elad
AU - Shraga, Shay
AU - Radomislensky, Irina
AU - Martindale, Sarah L.
AU - Bushinsky, Shir
AU - Benov, Avi
AU - Almog, Ofer
AU - Tsur, Avishai M.
AU - Talmy, Tomer
AU - Bahouth, H.
AU - Bala, M.
AU - Bar, A.
AU - Braslavsky, A.
AU - Czeiger, D.
AU - Fadeev, D.
AU - Goldstein, A. L.
AU - Grevtsev, I.
AU - Hashavia, E.
AU - Hirschhorn, G.
AU - Jeroukhimov, I.
AU - Kedar, A.
AU - Klein, Y.
AU - Korin, A.
AU - Levit, B.
AU - Schrier, I.
AU - Schwarz, A. D.
AU - Shomar, W.
AU - Weiss, M.
AU - Yaslowitz, O.
AU - Zoarets, I.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 The Authors
PY - 2025/4/1
Y1 - 2025/4/1
N2 - Introduction: Blast injuries are common among military personnel, yet their long-term psychiatric consequences, beyond posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI), remain underexplored. This study investigates the association between blast injuries and non-PTSD psychiatric conditions, including psychotic, neurocognitive, mood, anxiety, adjustment and personality disorders resulting in functional impairment. Methods: Data were collected from three cross-referenced registries that span the continuum of trauma care from 2006 to 2021. Demographics, injury mechanisms, and injury settings were sourced from the Israel Defense Forces Trauma Registry; hospitalization data from the Israeli National Trauma Registry and psychiatric-related disability was assessed utilizing long-term disability claims documented by the Israel Ministry of Health Rehabilitation Department. Logistic regression was employed to evaluate the association between blast injuries and psychiatric morbidity, with results presented as adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI). Results: Among 7646 military personnel (91.3 % male, median age: 20 years), 1503 (19.7 %) sustained blast injuries. Overall, 44 (0.6 %) were diagnosed with non-PTSD psychiatric-related disability. Prevalence was higher among those with blast injuries (1.0 % vs. 0.5 %; p = 0.016). Blast injuries were associated with a more than two-fold increase in odds for psychiatric morbidity (Adjusted OR 2.44, 95 % CI: 1.07–5.59) after adjusting for blast injury severity and presence of head injury. Conclusions: Blast injury was significantly associated with long-term psychiatric morbidity, independent of head injury and additional confounders. These findings suggest that proactive mental health screening and interventions should be considered for individuals experiencing blast injuries. Future research should explore the mechanisms underlying this association.
AB - Introduction: Blast injuries are common among military personnel, yet their long-term psychiatric consequences, beyond posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI), remain underexplored. This study investigates the association between blast injuries and non-PTSD psychiatric conditions, including psychotic, neurocognitive, mood, anxiety, adjustment and personality disorders resulting in functional impairment. Methods: Data were collected from three cross-referenced registries that span the continuum of trauma care from 2006 to 2021. Demographics, injury mechanisms, and injury settings were sourced from the Israel Defense Forces Trauma Registry; hospitalization data from the Israeli National Trauma Registry and psychiatric-related disability was assessed utilizing long-term disability claims documented by the Israel Ministry of Health Rehabilitation Department. Logistic regression was employed to evaluate the association between blast injuries and psychiatric morbidity, with results presented as adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI). Results: Among 7646 military personnel (91.3 % male, median age: 20 years), 1503 (19.7 %) sustained blast injuries. Overall, 44 (0.6 %) were diagnosed with non-PTSD psychiatric-related disability. Prevalence was higher among those with blast injuries (1.0 % vs. 0.5 %; p = 0.016). Blast injuries were associated with a more than two-fold increase in odds for psychiatric morbidity (Adjusted OR 2.44, 95 % CI: 1.07–5.59) after adjusting for blast injury severity and presence of head injury. Conclusions: Blast injury was significantly associated with long-term psychiatric morbidity, independent of head injury and additional confounders. These findings suggest that proactive mental health screening and interventions should be considered for individuals experiencing blast injuries. Future research should explore the mechanisms underlying this association.
KW - Blast injuries
KW - Disability
KW - Mental health
KW - Military personnel
KW - Psychiatric morbidity
KW - Rehabilitation
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105000870713
U2 - 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2025.03.026
DO - 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2025.03.026
M3 - Article
C2 - 40153972
AN - SCOPUS:105000870713
SN - 0022-3956
VL - 184
SP - 515
EP - 521
JO - Journal of Psychiatric Research
JF - Journal of Psychiatric Research
ER -