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. 2021 Nov;56(11):2107-2116.
doi: 10.1007/s00127-021-02166-x. Epub 2021 Sep 4.

Cohort profile: the Ohio Army National Guard Mental Health Initiative (OHARNG-MHI)

Laura Sampson  1 , Gregory H Cohen  2 , David S Fink  3 , Carla Conroy  4 , Joseph R Calabrese  4 , John M Wryobeck  5 , Jon D Elhai  6 , Anthony P King  7 , Israel Liberzon  8 , Sandro Galea  9
Affiliations

Cohort profile: the Ohio Army National Guard Mental Health Initiative (OHARNG-MHI)

Laura Sampson et al. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2021 Nov.

Abstract

Purpose: Rates of mental disorders in the United States military have increased in recent years. National Guard members may be particularly at risk for mental disorders, given their dual role as citizen-soldiers and their increased involvement in combat deployments during recent conflicts. The Ohio Army National Guard Mental Health Initiative (OHARNG-MHI) was launched to assess the prevalence, incidence, and potential causes and consequences of mental disorders in this unique population.

Methods: OHARNG-MHI is a decade-long dynamic cohort study that followed over 3,000 National Guard members yearly through structured telephone interviews.

Results: Findings thus far have applied a pre-, peri-, post-deployment framework, identifying factors throughout the life course associated with mental disorders, including childhood events and more recent events, both during and outside of deployment. An estimated 61% of participants had at least one mental disorder in their lifetime, the majority of which initiated prior to military service. Psychiatric comorbidity was common, as were alcohol use and stressful events. Latent class growth analyses revealed four distinct trajectory paths of both posttraumatic stress and depression symptoms across four years. Only 37% of soldiers with probable past-year mental disorders accessed mental health services in the subsequent year, with substance use disorders least likely to be treated.

Conclusion: Strengths of this study include a large number of follow-up interviews, detailed data on both military and non-military experiences, and a clinical assessment subsample that assessed the validity of the telephone screening instruments. Findings, methods, and procedures of the study are discussed, and collaborations are welcome.

Keywords: Alcohol use disorders; Cohort study; Depression; Military health; PTSD.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest/Competing interests: No authors have any conflicts of interest to disclose.

Figures

Fig 1.
Fig 1.
Study participation diagram showing dynamic cohort design for the Ohio Army National Guard Mental Health Initiative. W = wave/interview year.
Fig 2.
Fig 2.
Prevalence of gender, race, and age group across eight study years in the Ohio Army National Guard Mental Health Initiative. W = wave/interview year.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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