Psychometric evaluation of the Hamburg Nightmare Questionnaire (HNQ)

Background: Nightmares are a widespread phenomenon. In comparison to the general population, they occur in mentally ill and especially in traumatized individuals with an increased frequency. Despite the high prevalence, there is no short questionnaire in the German language that is able to characterize nightmares, to differentiate between different nightmare types and to assess their impact on daytime functioning.

Objective: The Hamburg Nightmare Questionnaire (HNQ) has been developed as a short self-rating instrument to fill this gap.

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Risk Factors for Child Sexual Abuse Victimization : A Meta-Analytic Review

Experiencing child sexual abuse (CSA) is a major public health problem with serious consequences for CSA victims. For effective assessment and (preventive) intervention, knowledge on risk factors and their effects is crucial. Here, the aim was to synthesize research on associations between (putative) risk factors and CSA victimization. In total, 765 (putative) risk factors were extracted from 72 studies, which were classified into 35 risk domains. A series of three-level meta-analyses produced a significant mean effect for 23 of the 35 risk domains ranging from r = .101 to r = .360.

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Can We Apply the Psychology of Risk Perception to Increase Earthquake Preparation?

Can we encourage people to prepare for a natural disaster by altering the way that scientific information about risk is presented? In assessing the risk posed by a particular hazard, people tend to be guided more strongly by their emotional reactions than by logical or statistical analysis; human beings are driven to protect themselves from risks that that they have actually experienced, that are easy to envision, or that are linked to vivid, concrete images.

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Do early interventions prevent PTSD? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the safety and efficacy of early interventions after sexual assault

Objective: To review the safety and efficacy of early interventions after sexual assault in reducing or preventing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Method: Systematic searches were performed on studies (1980–2018) that examined the efficacy of interventions for PTSD within 3 months after sexual assault.

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Feasibility of EMDR for posttraumatic stress disorder in patients with personality disorders : a pilot study

Background: Trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are prevalent in patients with personality disorders. Despite the established efficacy of eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) for PTSD, EMDR has barely been examined in patients with comorbid PTSD and personality disorders.

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Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Severity and Insomnia‐Related Sleep Disturbances : Longitudinal Associations in a Large, Gender‐Balanced Cohort of Combat‐Exposed Veterans

Few studies have investigated the range and severity of insomnia‐related sleep complaints among veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the temporal association between insomnia and PTSD severity has yet to be examined. To examine these associations, a large, gender‐balanced cohort of veterans (N = 1,649) of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts participated in longitudinal assessments of PTSD and insomnia‐related symptoms over a period of 2.5 years following enrollment (range: 2–4 years).

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The association between visa insecurity and mental health, disability and social engagement in refugees living in Australia

Background: The vast majority of the world’s refugees and people seeking asylum live in a state of sustained displacement. Little is known, however, about the mental health impact of prolonged insecurity.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association between insecure visa status and mental health, suicidality, disability and social engagement in a sample of refugees and asylum-seekers living in Australia

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Individual prediction of psychotherapy outcome in posttraumatic stress disorder using neuroimaging data

Trauma-focused psychotherapy is the first-line treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but 30–50% of patients do not benefit sufficiently. We investigated whether structural and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI/rs-fMRI) data could distinguish between treatment responders and non-responders on the group and individual level. Forty-four male veterans with PTSD underwent baseline scanning followed by traumafocused psychotherapy.

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Effectiveness of trauma-focused treatment for adolescents with major depressive disorder

Background: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) in adolescence has a high prevalence and risk of disability, but current treatments show limited effectiveness and high drop-out and relapse rates. Although the role of distressing experiences that relate to the development and maintenance of MDD has been recognized for decades, the efficacy of a trauma-focused treatment approach for MDD has hardly been studied.

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Circulating Serum MicroRNAs as Potential Diagnostic Biomarkers of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder : A Pilot Study

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric disorder that can develop upon exposure to a traumatic event. While most people are able to recover promptly, others are at increased risk of developing PTSD. However, the exact underlying biological mechanisms of differential susceptibility are unknown. Identifying biomarkers of PTSD could assist in its diagnosis and facilitate treatment planning. Here, we identified serum microRNAs (miRNAs) of subjects that underwent a traumatic event and aimed to assess their potential to serve as diagnostic biomarkers of PTSD.

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