Prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among Air Force Personnel Stationed at the Nigerian Air Force base, Kaduna

Abstract 
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a 
clinically significant mental health condition 
disproportionately prevalent in military 
populations exposed to combat trauma. Air 
Force personnel in Nigeria operate under 
conditions of sustained occupational stress, 
exposure to combat-related trauma, and the 
unique psychological demands of aerial 
operations in counter-insurgency environments 
against Boko Haram. Despite the Nigerian Air 
Force's frontline role in these operations, no 
empirical data on PTSD prevalence in this 
population previously existed. A cross
sectional descriptive survey design was 
adopted. A total of 322 participants were 
selected through stratified random sampling 
from an approximate base population of 2,500 
Air Force personnel. The sample comprised 
83.2% males and 16.8% females; the majority 
(50.3%)were junior enlisted (airmen/airwo- -men), and 43.8% fell within the 26–35 age 
bracket. Data were collected using the PTSD 
Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5), a validated 20
item self-report instrument (Cronbach's α = 
0.94 in this sample), with a cut-off score of 
≥33 used to establish probable PTSD. 
Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and 
binary logistic regression were conducted 
using SPSS version 25.0. The overall 
prevalence of PTSD was 34.5% (n = 111 of 
322), indicating that approximately one in 
three personnel met the probable PTSD 
threshold. The mean PCL-5 total score was 
29.7 (SD = 14.2) for the full sample, rising to 
48.3 (SD = 9.6) among those meeting PTSD 
criteria. PTSD was significantly more 
prevalent among personnel with any combat 
deployment history (48.9%) versus no 
deployment (13.4%), and peaked at 57.4% 
among those with two or more deployments 
(χ² = 47.32, p < 0.001). Junior enlisted 
personnel showed the highest PTSD rate at 
41.4%, compared to 19.0% among  
 
commissioned officers (χ² = 12.87, p = 0.002). 
Intrusion symptoms were the most 
prominently endorsed (M = 9.8, SD = 4.6), 
followed by arousal and reactivity (M = 8.9, 
SD = 4.1), negative cognition and mood (M = 
8.4, SD = 4.8), and avoidance (M = 4.2, SD = 
2.9). Logistic regression identified combat 
deployment history (OR = 5.94, 95% CI: 
3.21–11.01, p < 0.001), multiple deployments 
(OR = 3.47, 95% CI: 1.89–6.38, p < 0.001), 
junior enlisted rank (OR = 2.83, 95% CI: 
1.34–5.97, p = 0.006), and male sex (OR = 
2.11, 95% CI: 1.02–4.36, p = 0.044) as 
significant independent predictors of PTSD. 
This study provides the first empirical estimate 
of PTSD prevalence among Nigerian Air 
Force personnel, revealing a substantial and 
previously unquantified mental health burden. 
The findings underscore the urgent need for 
institutionalised mental health screening, 
psychoeducation, and evidence-based 
treatment protocols within the Nigerian Air 
Force, including Cognitive Processing 
Therapy (CPT) and Prolonged Exposure (PE). 
Policy frameworks protecting personnel from 
career penalties associated with mental health 
disclosures are strongly recommended.