Examining physical health conditions and associations of pain, obesity, and function of UK Veterans diagnosed with PTSD and other mental health conditions

Abstract

Introduction: Little is known about the physical health conditions experienced by United Kingdom (UK) military Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other mental health diagnoses. We aimed to explore the prevalence of self-reported physical health complaints and health behaviours in a patient sample of UK Veterans who had engaged with mental health services. Methods: This study used questionnaire data from a cross-sectional study that sampled Veterans engaged in a UK national Veteran’s mental health charity ( N = 403). Prevalence rates of reported physical health complaints were ranked, and health behaviours were described. Adjusted multivariate logistic regression models were fitted to examine associations between the top five physical health complaints and socio-demographic factors, mental health outcomes, and health-related behaviours. Results: We observed that chronic pain (41.2%, n = 166) and poor mobility (34.2%, n = 138) were the most prevalent conditions reported. Participants with PTSD were more than twice as likely to report chronic pain (AOR = 2.25, 95% CI, 1.16–4.37, P ≤ 0.05). Of 384 Veterans in the sample, the majority had a calculated body mass index (BMI) deemed overweight or obese (76.5%, n = 294). Obese participants were 2–4 times more likely to report prevalent physical health complaints. Discussion: Veterans with complex mental health problems experience a high burden of physical health complaints. Of most concern are the associations between PTSD, obesity, pain, impairment, and the potential difficulties in recovery and treatment. These findings are important for the way health services assess and treat individuals presenting with complex mental health problems.