Title : CAPS as an instrument of verification of PTSD diagnosis in combatants with PTSD
Abstract:
The aim of this study was to investigate the dynamics of clinical manifestations of posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD) among combatants. We conducted a comparative study of two groups of patients: 1) with mental disorders due to brain damage and dysfunction (F06-F07) as a result of combat traumatic brain injury (TBI), 2) with combat PTSD (F43.1) and enduring personality change after catastrophic experience (F62.0). The patients with PTSD had mild TBI without or with brief loss of consciousness and the patients of second group endured moderate TBI with long loss of consciousness. We used the methods of clinical interview and clinical research, standard method in PTSD assessment; Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) and the Mississippi Scale for combat-related PTSD. Groups of patients were formed according to the ICD-10 criteria. They were comparable according to the age, sex, long term of disease, many social-psychological features. The obtained data allow us to suppose that at the certain stage of development of these disease the reapprochement of their clinical manifestation takes place, though specific etiopathogenetic mechanisms occurres. These as well as a number of other clinical and biochemical data testify the current transformation of combat PTSD into organic brain disease.
