Multiple Deployments and Combat Trauma: Do Homefront Stressors Increase the Risk for Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms?

This study examined the role of homefront stressors (such as family or occupational problems) in postraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms prior to and after a new Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) deployment for 196 U.S. National Guard Soldiers. A pattern of chronic homefront stressors both pre- and post-deployment was associated with a higher risk of post-deployment PTSD symptoms.