Mental disorder as a risk factor for human immunodeficiency virus infection in a sample of veterans

Abstract

People who suffer from mental disorders are at increased risk for becoming infected with HIV. There have been no studies that show whether particular psychiatric disorders present an increased risk for HIV infection in samples of nonpatients. This article uses data from the 1992 National Survey of Veterans to determine if veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or with other mental or emotional problems, are at increased risk for HIV infection. The results indicate that the combination of PTSD and substance abuse increased the risk of HIV infection by almost 12 times over those without either. This is evidence of a particular psychiatric disorder increasing risk for HIV. Although cross-sectional, these data allow some conjecture about the timing of the onset of PTSD in relation to HIV infection. These results present powerful evidence that mentally ill persons such as those with PTSD, who may be underserved for health services including AIDS prevention efforts, should be targeted as an at-risk group.