ARQ National Psychotrauma Centre

Background

Exposure to traumatic stress increases the odds of developing a broad range of psychiatric conditions. Genetic studies targeting multiple stress-related quantitative phenotypes may shed light on mechanisms underlying vulnerability to psychopathology in the aftermath of stressful events. We applied a multivariate genome-wide association study (GWAS) to a unique military cohort (N=583) in which we measured biochemical and behavioral phenotypes.

COVID-19 affects many societies by measures as "social distancing", forcing mental health care professionals to deliver treatments online or via telephone. In this context, online Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an emerging treatment for patients with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

What are the consequences of corona in mental health care? The switch was quite a challenge, but with an intensive online program, the treatment continued as well as possible. In this video Ruud Jongedijk and Fleur van Hensbergen from ARQ National Psychotrauma Center have their say.

In most disasters that have been studied, the underlying dangerous cause does not persist for very long. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic a progressively emerging life threat remains, exposing everyone to varying levels of risk of contracting the illness, dying, or infecting others. Distancing and avoiding company have a great impact on social life.

Background: Efficient prevention of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) needs to target individuals with an increased risk for adverse outcome after trauma. Prognostic or prescriptive biological markers assessed early posttrauma may inform personalized treatment recommendations.

Objective: To test prognostic and prescriptive effects of early (posttraumatic) autonomic and endocrine markers on PTSD symptom development.

Background

Homicidal bereavement puts survivors at risk of developing a broad range of lasting and severe mental health problems. Previous research has often relied on relatively small and homogenous samples. Still, little is known about what factors influence the expression of symptoms following homicidal bereavement. Preventive and curative treatments often do not consider the complex coherence between the emotional, judicial, financial, and
societal challenges that likely arise following a homicide.

Background: Military members (MMs), including Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Service members (SMs), and Veterans are at elevated risk of experiencing occupational traumas which can cause operational stress injuries (OSIs) including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and moral injury (MI). Traditional evidence-based psychotherapeutic interventions can be effective in

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: There is evidence that intolerance of uncertainty (IU) is associated with elevated post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms. There is a scarcity of research examining whether IU is prospectively related to PTS following exposure to negative life events. Using data from a Dutch student-sample, we examined the degree to which IU predicts post-traumatic stress symptoms associated with negative stressful life events (analogue posttraumatic stress (PTS)).

DESIGN: This was a prospective survey-study.