VAntage Point
Study sheds light on interplay among PTSD, combat experience, alcohol use
The findings appeared online in the
Journal of
Dual Diagnosis in March 2021.
In an observational study of more than 11,000 men with at least one traumatic experience, the researchers found that those with combat experience were much more likely than those without to report drinking alcohol to cope with PTSD. The diversity of traumatic experiences, the severity of PTSD, and diagnoses of alcohol abuse or dependence were significantly tied to drinking to cope with PTSD.
`Warrant additional research attention’
Dr. Shannon Blakey
However, combat experience was not strongly linked to drinking to cope when the researchers adjusted for a person’s total number of PTSD symptoms.