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At least 901 records · Page 50Linked to original sources
PubMed1979

Rapid eye movements in REM sleep--more evidence for a periodic organization.

Density scores of horizontal eye movements during 70 REM sleep periods of normal young adults and combat neurotic patients were subjected to spectral analysis. The results showed that in 58% of all REM periods, spectral peaks occurred at either 0.1 c/min or 0.05 c/min. The percentages of spectral peaks at these frequencies were equal in both groups. Since the estimated variance at these frequencies was significantly higher than the estimated variance at the adjacent frequencies and the mean variance at the rest of the spectra, it was concluded that eye movements in REM sleep tend to cluster every 10-20 min. These results and findings on the neural control of REM ocular activity suggest that REMs in sleep are generated by at least 3 generators: a burst generator, an isolated eye movement generator, and a 10-20 min periodic generator.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Hidden PTSD in substance abuse inpatients among Vietnam veterans.

Alcohol use patterns among Vietnam combat veterans is an area with little research. This study evaluated three groups of Vietnam subjects on a chemical dependency unit who had a current Axis I diagnosis of alcohol abuse. No subject possessed a PTSD diagnosis. Two groups involved in-country veterans divided by presence or absence of PTSD based on the MMPI-PTSD scale (In-country and PTSD). The third group did not experience combat and was below the mean on the MMPI-PTSD scale (Noncombat). These groups were compared on the MMPI and the Alcohol Use Inventory (AUI), a measure of alcohol use patterns. Results showed that the PTSD Group had significantly higher scores on the MMPI and AUI reflective of deteriorated and binge drinking patterns. Discussion focused on the "hidden" dimension of PTSD among chemically dependent Vietnam veteran inpatients. The Relapse Prevention model was endorsed.

Alcohol Drinking↗
PubMed1992

Decision tree for the management of substance-abusing psychiatric patients.

This paper describes a short-term approach developed at a time of numerous drug-related incidents occurring at a large VA Hospital to help staff manage psychiatric patients abusing alcohol or drugs during hospitalization. This was accomplished through the development of a decision tree designed to improve the clinical problem-solving process by identifying key decision points. Prior to this, staff responded emotionally either by prematurely discharging patients or by not recognizing the problem at all. Decision Trees have widespread applicability for resolving complex clinical problems.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Social cognitive theory of posttraumatic recovery: the role of perceived self-efficacy.

The present article integrates findings from diverse studies on the generalized role of perceived coping self-efficacy in recovery from different types of traumatic experiences. They include natural disasters, technological catastrophes, terrorist attacks, military combat, and sexual and criminal assaults. The various studies apply multiple controls for diverse sets of potential contributors to posttraumatic recovery. In these different multivariate analyses, perceived coping self-efficacy emerges as a focal mediator of posttraumatic recovery. Verification of its independent contribution to posttraumatic recovery across a wide range of traumas lends support to the centrality of the enabling and protective function of belief in one's capability to exercise some measure of control over traumatic adversity.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2005

Consistency of memory for emotionally arousing events: a review of prospective and experimental studies.

Although emotionally arousing events are more memorable than ordinary daily life events, the nature of memories for emotionally arousing events is widely debated. On the one hand, researchers consider memories for highly emotional events as malleable and subject to distortion, while on the other hand these memories are perceived as both indelible and consistent over the lifetime. Up till now, a systematic comparison of research findings on consistency of memory for emotional events is lacking. This paper is the first effort to summarize available studies on consistency of memory for emotionally arousing events and to address methodological limitations and suggestions for future research as well. In general, findings show that quality of the selected studies is sufficient to good, with studies with victims of assault and studies on war-exposure reaching higher quality scores than studies on flashbulb memories and experimental memory studies. Victims of assault or war-exposure tend to amplify their memories for the event, while results from flashbulb memory research and experimental research suggest that memory for emotional events is either stable or diminishes over time.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Waking up to shell shock: psychiatry in the US military during World War II.

During World War I, military officers encountered a new and puzzling phenomenon: soldiers emerged from the trenches stuttering, crying, trembling and at times were even paralysed and blind. Those in charge were convinced these soldiers were cowards or malingerers who deserved stern discipline or to be court-martialled. A number of physicians, by contrast, initially assumed that these alarming symptoms resulted from close exposure to explosions and called it shell shock. Later, they realized that it was a psychological reaction and came up with psychotherapeutic treatments. But it was only in World War II that military psychiatrists, particularly those in the USA, began to implement treatment methods for this phenomenon in a systematic way. Their thinking and the treatments they devised had significant consequences for the future of American psychiatry, which in turn influenced the development of psychiatry and military psychiatry world-wide.

Combat Disorders↗
PubMed2004

Unresolved grief in combat veterans with PTSD.

Clinicians have documented the importance of loss of comrades during combat as a significant source of distress. However, empirical studies have not focused on unresolved grief as a possible outcome of combat experiences. Consequently, unresolved grief has often been treated "after the fact" in the context of treating PTSD and depressive symptoms. In this study, we therefore, sought to demonstrate the prominence of combat-related grief-specific symptoms in a sample of Vietnam veterans being treated for PTSD. Our results indicated that indeed this sample of veterans reported high levels of grief-specific symptoms comparable to that found in bereaved individuals whose spouse had recently died, verifying its prominence as an important component of combat-related stress. Furthermore, grief severity was uniquely associated with losses of comrades during combat whereas no such relationship was shown for trauma or depressive symptoms. The latter finding suggested that in fact higher levels of grief stemmed from interpersonal losses during the war and was not simply an artifact of current general distress level.

Bereavement↗
PubMed2005

Alterations in cortisol negative feedback inhibition as examined using the ACTH response to cortisol administration in PTSD.

OBJECTIVE: Studies using the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) have demonstrated an enhanced negative feedback inhibition at the pituitary in PTSD, but have not provided information about central feedback effects, since dexamethasone (DEX) does not penetrate the brain well. The authors therefore examined the change in ACTH and cortisol before and after cortisol administration, which acts at central feedback sites in addition to peripheral targets. METHOD: Blood was obtained from 31 male veterans (18 with PTSD) before, and 8, 40 and 95 min following injection of 17.5 mg cortisol and placebo. RESULTS: A greater decline in ACTH was observed after cortisol injection in PTSD. CONCLUSIONS: Central as well as peripheral negative feedback inhibition may be altered in PTSD.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed2001

Salivary cortisol, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and general health in the acute phase and during 9-month follow-up.

BACKGROUND: Because traumatic events are unpredictable, there are few studies of psychobiological states immediately following such events. Our study aimed to determine the relation of salivary cortisol to psychologic distress immediately after a traumatic event and then during follow-up. METHODS: Measurement of morning and evening salivary cortisol and ratings of psychologic distress (using the Impact of Events Scale [IES], the Post Traumatic Symptom Scale, and the General Health Questionnaire) were performed with 31 United Nations soldiers at three time points--5 days and 2 and 9 months--following a mine accident in Lebanon. RESULTS: Five days after the accident, 15 subjects reported substantial posttraumatic distress according to the IES, as well as significantly lower morning and higher evening cortisol levels compared with the low-impact group. Within 9 months, the posttraumatic distress of the high-impact group was reduced, accompanied by an increase in morning and a decrease in evening cortisol levels. There were significant relationships between evening cortisol and all rating scales at the first and third time points. CONCLUSIONS: Subclinical posttraumatic stress following an adverse event can be measured biologically via salivary cortisol levels soon after the event.

Acute Disease↗