Neural correlates of inhibition and contextual cue processing related to treatment response in PTSD

Thirty to fifty percent of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) patients do not respond to treatment. Understanding the neural mechanisms underlying treatment response could contribute to improve response rates. PTSD is often associated with decreased inhibition of fear responses in a safe environment. Importantly, the mechanism of effective treatment (psychotherapy) relies on inhibition and so-called contextual cue processing. Therefore, we investigate inhibition and contextual cue processing in the context of treatment.

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Brief Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy Effects on Post-Treatment Suicide Attempts in a Military Sample: Results of a Randomized Clinical Trial With 2-Year Follow-Up

Objective: The authors evaluated the effectiveness of brief cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for the prevention of suicide attempts in military personnel. Method: In a randomized controlled trial, active-duty Army soldiers at Fort Carson, Colo., who either attempted suicide or experienced suicidal ideation with intent, were randomly assigned to treatment as usual (N=76) or treatment as usual plus brief CBT (N=76). Assessment of incidence of suicide attempts during the follow-up period was conducted with the Suicide Attempt Self-Injury Interview.

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Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy or eye movement desensitization and reprocessing: what works in children with posttraumatic stress symptoms? A randomized controlled trial

To prevent adverse long-term effects, children who suffer from posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) need treatment. Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT) is an established treatment for children with PTSS. However, alternatives are important for non-responders or if TF-CBT trained therapists are unavailable. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) is a promising treatment for which sound comparative evidence is lacking. The current randomized controlled trial investigates the effectiveness and efficiency of both treatments.

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Diagnosing and Treating Complex Trauma

The book introduces a layered model for diagnosing and treating complex trauma in four parts. Part One introduces the concept of complex trauma, its historical development and the various theories about trauma. The authors introduce a layered model that describes the symptoms of complex trauma, and conclude with a discussion on the three-phase model.
Part Two describes the diagnostic options available that make use of a layered model of complex trauma.

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Accessibility and effectiveness of mental health care for older adults

Introduction
The treatment of mental health disorders in older adults, as for all age groups, is important
because of the negative consequences of these disorders. Several (policy) measures have
been taken to optimize mental health care, but it is not self-evident that older adults
with mental disorders will receive this care; nor is it known whether older adults really
benefit from the mental health care they actually receive.
This chapter examines the prevalence of mental disorders in older adults, factors

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Evaluating the feasibility of complex interventions in mental health services : standardised measure and reporting guidelines.

Abstract
Background
The feasibility of implementation is insufficiently considered in clinical guideline development, leading to human and financial resource wastage.
Aims
To develop (a) an empirically based standardised measure of the feasibility of complex interventions for use within mental health services and (b) reporting guidelines to facilitate feasibility assessment.
Method

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Sleep structure and emotional memory processing in police officers and combat veterans with PTSD

Disturbed sleep is one of the key symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and may contribute to the genesis and maintenance of PTSD. Our previously published study*, executed in healthy subjects, suggests that adaptive changes occur in sleep architecture, after emotional experiences, that benefit emotional housekeeping and the attenuation of emotional responses to negative emotional experiences. Little is known, however, about the relation between sleep and emotional memory processing in PTSD.

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Effects of oxidative stress on fatty acid- and one-carbon-metabolism in psychiatric and cardiovascular disease comorbidity

ObjectiveCardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in severe psychiatric disorders (depression, schizophrenia). Here, we provide evidence of how the effects of oxidative stress on fatty acid (FA) and one-carbon (1-C) cycle metabolism, which may initially represent adaptive responses, might underlie comorbidity between CVD and psychiatric disorders.MethodWe conducted a literature search and integrated data in a narrative review.ResultsOxidative stress, mainly generated in mitochondria, is implicated in both psychiatric and cardiovascular pathophysiology.

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Seven-Year Follow-Up Study of Symptoms in Asylum Seekers and Refugees With PTSD Treated With Trauma-Focused Groups

Objective: To examine sustainability of symptom outcomes of a 1-year phase-based traumafocused, multimodal, and multicomponent group therapy in a day treatment program for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) over an average period of 7 years.

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Screening and treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder in patients with substance use disorders

Roughly, one out of four patients with a substance use disorder (SUD) also meets criteria for PTSD. Both disorders seem to be highly intertwined. Two chapters of this thesis focus on the development of a screening questionnaire to detect PTSD within substance abuse treatment centers. For this purpose, a PTSD screener from the United States army was used, the Primary Care posttraumatic stress disorder screen (PC-PTSD). Based on the results of this study a new screener was assembled and cross-validated: the Jellinek-PTSD screening questionnaire (J-PTSD).

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