PTSD 40% of casualties were shell-shocked at the Battle of the Somme in 1916. Please see addendum on March 26, 2014 added to the end of this blog. Thank you.

At the Battle of the Somme in 1916, as many as 40% of casualties were shell-shocked, resulting in concern about an epidemic of psychiatric casualties, which could not be afforded in either military or financial.

Battles - The Battle of the Somme, 1916
Comprising the main Allied attack on the Western Front during 1916, the Battle of the Somme is famous chiefly on account of the loss of 58,000 British troops (one third of them killed) on the first day of the battle, 1 July 1916, which to this day remains a one-day record. The attack was launched upon a 30 kilometre front, from north of the Somme river between Arras and Albert, and ran from 1 July until 18 November, at which point it was called off.

ADDENDUM March 26, 2014

From DoSomething.org,

Psychiatrists project that 1 in 3 U.S. soldiers will suffer from PTSD after serving in Iraq or Afghanistan (or both). The rate for PTSD is two times higher for those men and women who served two tours, which makes up approximately 40 percent of all U.S. troops.

I would like to make note the percentages being quoted in 2014 are the same as what the British Military stated in 1916. Getting close to the Century mark, one can see there has not been any progress in reducing the rates. This is a serious concern.