Challenges and Successes in Dissemination of Evidence-Based Treatments for Posttraumatic Stress: Lessons Learned From Prolonged Exposure Therapy for PTSD

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) poses monumental public health challenges because of its contribution to mental health, physical health, and both interpersonal and social problems. Recent military engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan and the multitude of resulting cases of PTSD have highlighted the public health significance of these conditions. There are now psychological treatments that can effectively treat most individuals with PTSD, including active duty military personnel, veterans, and civilians.

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Changes in trauma memory and patterns of posttraumatic stress

The traditional static view of trauma memory holds that memories for such events are fixed and relatively unchanging over time. A more recent dynamic view proposes that memory for potential trauma, like memory for ordinary events, changes with time. The present study examined predictions from these competing theories in repeated assessments of high exposed survivors of the September 11th (9/11) attacks. Memory was assessed using both standardized questionnaires and a free recall paradigm. These data and a measure of posttraumatic stress were obtained at 7 and 18 months post-9/11.

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Book review: Trauma counselling: Theories and interventions

Reviews the book Trauma counselling: Theories and interventions by Lisa Lopez Levers (editor). ISBN: 978-0-8261-0683-4

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Brazilian version of the Structured Interview for Disorders of Extreme Stress - Revised (SIDES-R): adaptation and validation process

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) contemplates the impact of acute traumatic events, but the literature indicates that this is not true for chronic exposure to stress. In this sense, the category disorders of extreme stress not otherwise specified (DESNOS) has been proposed to characterize the behavior and cognitive alterations derived from exposure to continuous early life stress. The Structured Interview for Disorders of Extreme Stress - Revised (SIDES-R) was developed to investigate and measure DESNOS.

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Breaking the Links in Intergenerational Violence: An Emotional Regulation Perspective

The saying violence begets violence is an apt descriptor of the cycle of family violence, as children who witness parental violence are at high risk for repeating family violence in their own adult intimate relationships. Neuroscience research suggests that emotional regulation may be an important link in the heritability of family violence, and promotes awareness of the importance of internalizing as well as externalizing responses to stress, neglect, and abuse.

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Association of childhood-trauma-by-primary caregiver and affect dysregulation with borderline personality disorder symptoms in adulthood

Potentially traumatizing experiences by a primary caregiver during childhood (TPC) may lead to affect dysregulation, which is a hallmark of borderline personality disorder (BPD) in adulthood. Path analyses with bootstrap confidence intervals were used to explore the relationships of TPC and under- and overregulation of affect to BPD symptoms. Almost 63% of a sample of 472 patients diagnosed with either BPD alone, comorbid BPD + somatoform disorder, or other mental disorder, reported childhood TPC.

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Annual Research Review: Positive adjustment to adversity - Trajectories of minimal-impact resilience and emergent resilience

Background:Research on resilience in the aftermath of potentially traumatic life events (PTE) is still evolving. For decades, researchers have documented resilience in children exposed to corrosive early environments, such as poverty or chronic maltreatment. Relatively more recently, the study of resilience has migrated to the investigation of isolated PTE in adults.

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An evaluation of ICD-11 PTSD and complex PTSD criteria in a sample of adult survivors of childhood institutional abuse

The WHO recently launched the proposal for the 11th version of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) that also includes two diagnoses related to traumatic stress. In contrast to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), ICD-11 will probably, in addition to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), also define a new diagnosis termed GÇ£complex posttraumatic stress disorderGÇØ (CPTSD).

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Ala54Thr fatty acid-binding protein 2 (FABP2) polymorphism in recurrent depression: associations with fatty acid concentrations and waist circumference

BackgroundFatty acid (FA)-alterations may mediate the mutual association between Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, etiology of observed FA-alterations in MDD and CVD remains largely unclear. An interesting candidate may be a mutation in the fatty acid–binding protein 2 (FABP2)-gene, because it regulates dietary FA-uptake.

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Adolescent Girls' Use of Avoidant and Approach Coping as Moderators Between Trauma Exposure and Trauma Symptoms

High rates of child maltreatment demand attention, as exposure to child maltreatment substantially increases the risk of developing PTSD. Some evidence exists that the presence of coping skills may reduce the likelihood that victims of childhood maltreatment will develop PTSD (Agaibi & Wilson, Trauma Violence Abuse 6:195–216, 2005). This study examined whether avoidant and/or approach coping skills moderated the relationship between childhood trauma exposure and trauma symptoms among adolescent females with a history of complex trauma.

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