Recently, President Obama announced that all United States troops would be pulled out of Iraq by the end of the year. While this is certainly good news for the service members serving in Iraq and their families, it also means that veterans programs and facilities in Washington and throughout the country must be prepared to handle the influx of veterans returning home.

According to a new study, there is one effect of military service that is affecting an unexpected number of veterans: domestic violence. Researchers recently found that approximately 45 percent of veterans receiving treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the Puget Sound area reported being aggressive with their spouse or significant other.

Although that study was local and fairly informal, its results are supported by national research. A VA nurse recently found that 60 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who suffered from PTSD had committed "mild-to-moderate" domestic violence against their spouse or partner within the previous six months.

Further, the study found a significant relationship between domestic violence and suicide, and between domestic violence and homicide. Yet only one-fourth of the veterans surveyed reported that their doctors had asked them about domestic violence.

It may seem that the findings of domestic violence are less serious because the survey only sought data from vets with PTSD. However, because a large percentage of the veterans returning from the recent conflicts have been diagnosed with PTSD, the domestic violence data actually covers a significant portion of the veteran population. Clearly, more needs to be done to help veterans recover and reacclimate when they return from active combat in order to avoid the potentially deadly consequences of PTSD and domestic violence.

Source: Seattle Weekly, "Jared Hagemann's Tale Illustrates Big Problem Among Vets: Domestic Violence," Nina Shapiro, Nov. 11, 2011