The Department of Veterans Affairs said nearly 15 % of the female US veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan experienced sexual trauma during their military service. These veterans were 1.5 times as likely as other veterans to need mental health services.

Rachel Kimerling of the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System in California said, "We are, in fact, detecting men and women who seem to have a significant need for mental health services."

The study, presented at a meeting of the American Public Health Association in San Diego was based on data from 100,000 veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom who used VA health care, found that more than one in seven women reported having experienced "military sexual trauma".

This, Kimerling said, ranges from events such as coerced sex to outright rape or threatening and unwelcome sexual advances. "If you think about military service where you are living and working so closely with the same people, that even if it is not sexual assault ... it is possible that severe sexual harassment is just as traumatic," she said.

The study which covered a six year period also found that 0.7 % men returning from duty reported military sexual trauma. Individuals who experienced sexual trauma in service were also more likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness upon return as compared to those who never faced a trauma and could lead to depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and a propensity for drug abuse, according to the study.

VA researcher Joanne Pavao said, "These data highlight the importance of the VA's universal screening policy as well as early intervention among veterans who have experienced sexual trauma." VA policy "requires that all male and female veterans are screened for experiences of military sexual trauma and that free treatment for MST-related conditions is provided at all VA health care facilities," Pavao said.

Kimerling said many veterans may be unaware that they could be helped. "There are dedicated health care services for military sexual trauma at every VA facility across the nation. We know there are effective, evidence-based treatments for them that are used in VA," she added.