Associations of Postdeployment PTSD Symptoms With Predeployment Symptoms in Iraq-Deployed Army Soldiers

Prior to deployment, military personnel may experience a range of symptoms typically associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD); however, the relationship of specific preexisting symptoms characteristic of PTSD to postdeployment PTSD symptoms is not well understood. This prospective study examined (a) pre- to postdeployment changes in reexperiencing, avoidance, numbing, and hyperarousal symptoms among Iraq-deployed military personnel, and (b) pre- to postdeployment associations among these symptom groupings. Seven-hundred and seventy-four U.S. Army soldiers completed the PTSD Checklist pre- and postdeployment to Iraq. Participants demonstrated increases in reexperiencing, avoidance, and hyperarousal symptom severity but not in severity of numbing symptoms from pre- to postdeployment. Predeployment numbing was positively correlated with all postdeployment symptom clusters, and predeployment hyperarousal was positively correlated with postdeployment hyperarousal, reexperiencing, and numbing. Findings highlight the role of preexisting numbing and hyperarousal symptoms in the evolution of PTSD symptoms following trauma exposure.