ISTSS News

Join ISTSS in June for a webinar on Harnessing the Healing Power of Relationships

Wed, 02 May 2012 13:46:00 -0500

Harnessing the Healing Power of Relationships: Reconceptualizing PTSD and Enhancing Treatment
Candice Monson, Ph.D.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Noon - 1:30 p.m. Central Time

U.S. Veterans Suffer from Stigma of Mental Health

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 18:11:00 -0500

According to the RAND report in 2008, 20% of soldiers who served in Iraq and Afghanistan developed PTSD or major depression. While the disorders are becoming more widely known by veterans and researchers are continuing to improve understanding and treatment of the conditions, it is not well understood among the general public. One of the most common misconceptions about PTSD is that Veterans who suffer with it are violent. However, research indicates that Veterans with PTSD and the general population are equally susceptible to violent behavior. Researchers continue to work to lessen the stigma of PTSD.

For the full story, go to http://thenationshealth.aphapublications.org/content/42/3/1.1.full

The March issue of Traumatic StressPoints is now available!

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 12:52:00 -0500

The March issue includes a message from ISTSS President Eve Carlson, PhD, a profile on the life of a fellow ISTSS member and recurring StressPoints favorites including Trauma and World Literature, Media Matters and trauma-related articles.

Read it now!

Prolonged Exposure (PE) with Paroxetine Better Than PE with Placebo

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 12:04:00 -0500

Researchers at Columbia University in New York conducted a randomized control trail comparing Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy combined with paroxetine (an SSRI) with PE combined with a placebo. Participants (N = 37) in this trial were victims of the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001 who had PTSD. Both groups received 10 weeks of PE while taking medication or placebo. At the end of treatment, individuals in the PE plus paroxetine condition (n = 19) had lower PTSD symptom severity, were more likely to have remitted, and had higher quality of life ratings than were the individuals in the PE plus placebo condition (n = 18). The study was published in the American Journal of Psychiatry in January 2012 http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleID=181224.

Back by popular demand! Join Dr. Edna Foa in March for a Webinar on Healing People with PTSD

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 16:56:00 -0500

Healing People with PTSD
Edna B. Foa, PhD
Friday, March 23, 2012
9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Central Time
14:00 - 15:30 UTC

Recognizing and Preventing Child Abuse

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 19:11:00 -0500

Recent events in the US news has brought the issues surrounding male childhood sexual abuse again to the forefront. The sexual abuse and assault of boys and men occurs in up to 1 in 6 males. Many of the issues are common to all types of sexual abuse and sexual assault: secrecy and silencing, betrayal by a trusted authority figure, proximal and distal physical effects of abuse, and, in the absence of effective treatment, long-term psychological and psychiatric problems, although how some of these play out may be different in boys and men, due in part to the cultural concomitants of masculine identity. As with other forms of sexual abuse, information and education are often important components of prevention and treatment for all involved, from those at risk to those who have been victimized, to those caring professionally or personally. Available resources have increased over the past 20 years. ISTSS offers the following web links, which, while not meant to be comprehensive, may serve as starting points for lay and professional individuals alike:

http://www.nctsn.org/trauma-types/sexual-abuse: This link provides a gateway to resources of sexual abuse, including information specifically for parents of sexual abuse survivors, along with information about cultural aspects of sexual abuse. The National Child Traumatic Stress Network is a US federally-funded collaborative organization of researchers and community service providers in the area of child trauma. The website as a whole provides comprehensive information about many types of childhood trauma, including assessment measures, general information about types of treatment, etc.

http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/CM-FactSheet-a.pdf
http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/pub/PreventingChildAbuse.html: These links bring the viewer to resources provided by the US Center for Disease Control (CDC). One of the CDC priority areas is in violence prevention. The first of the two links above provides a general fact sheet about child maltreatment. The second link allows the viewer to download for free a 55-page book, Preventing Child Sexual Abuse Within Youth-serving Organizations: Getting Started on Policies and Procedures.

http://ovc.ncjrs.gov/findvictimservices/: This link brings the viewer to a website provided by the US Office of Victim of Crime (which is located within the US Department of Justice), which provides a US and international directory of victim services. On the second page of this website, there is the opportunity for the viewer to specify the country of interest, the US state or territory of interest, type of victimization, and type of agency sought.

http://rainn.org/get-information/types-of-sexual-assault/male-sexual-assault: This link brings the viewer to an information sheet put together by the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN), a privately-funded group. As an organization, RAINN addresses sexual abuse of girls and women as well as boys and men.

http://1in6.org/get-information/: This link serves as a portal for information about male sexual abuse/assault, as provided by the organization 1in6.

While all of the websites above provide phone numbers for those needing help or to report abuse, the Childhelp® National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-2445) is among the oldest established phonelines.

2012 ISTSS Annual Meeting - Abstract submission now open!

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:09:00 -0500

Submit your abstract for the 2012 Annual Meeting in Los Angeles today!

SUBMIT NOW

Join Marylene Cloitre, PhD, for a webinar on treating adult survivors of childhood abuse

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 11:18:00 -0500

Psychotherapy for the Interrupted Life: Treating Adult Survivors of Childhood Abuse
Marylene Cloitre, PhD
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
12:00 p.m. - 1:30 p.m. CT

The January issue of Traumatic StressPoints is now available

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 11:15:00 -0500

The January issue includes information on the 28th Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, profiles of each 2011 ISTSS award winner and recurring StressPoints favorites including Trauma and World Literature and trauma-related articles.

Read it now!

PTSD Links Exposure and Respiratory Illness in 9/11 Workers

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 18:31:00 -0500

A recent study of 9/11 responders, including 8,508 police officers and 12,333 other types of responders, indicates that the relationship between exposure and respiratory illness is mediated by PTSD. The study is published online in the journal Psychological Medicine.

Join Dr. Edna Foa in January for a Webinar on Healing People with PTSD

Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:59:00 -0500

Healing People with PTSD
presented by Edna B. Foa, PhD
Monday, January 16, 2012
12:00 - 1:30 p.m. CST

The November issue of Traumatic StressPoints is now available

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 20:42:00 -0500

The November issue includes an introduction of the new StressPoints editor, 27th Annual Meeting information and recurring StressPoints favorites including Trauma and World Literature and trauma-related research articles.

Read it now!

Cognitive Behavioral Therapies Prevent Chronic PTSD in Recent Survivors

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 17:57:00 -0500

Arieh Shalev, MD and colleagues delivered results from the Jerusalem Trauma Outreach and Prevention Study in the Archives of General Psychiatry this month. In a randomized controlled study, the authors were able to demonstrate that, when provided to recent survivors of traumatic events who met threshold for PTSD, Prolonged Exposure (PE), Cognitive Therapy, and delayed PE all prevented chronic PTSD. Escitalopram (Lexapro) was also tested with this population but there was no visible improvement over placebo. Since prevention of PTSD is such a pressing public health issue, this is an exciting finding for those with PTSD symptoms following a traumatic event.

Fulbright Scholarship Awarded to ISTSS Board Member Kathryn Magruder

Mon, 03 Oct 2011 10:54:00 -0500

VA HSR&D researcher and ISYSS board member, Kathryn Magruder, Ph.D., M.P.H., has been awarded a Fulbright scholarship. Dr. Magruder is a core investigator with the HSR&D's Center for Disease Prevention and Health Interventions for Diverse Populations in Charleston, SC. Her career focus has been on studying post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in military Veterans, and she will enhance this work as a Fulbright scholar in Ankara, Turkey.

Dr. Magruder will spend the next nine months in Ankara observing PTSD symptoms in civilians (such as Iraqi citizens from the Mosul area), who have been temporarily removed from their stressful environments. Dr. Magruder will work from the Psychiatry Department at the Hacettepe University Medical School in Ankara, where she will conduct lectures and seminars about past and ongoing VA research, and continue several studies currently underway, including "A Twin Study of The Course and Consequences of PTSD in Vietnam Era Veterans," and "Long-Term Health Outcomes of Women's Service during the Vietnam Era." Dr. Magruder also is conducting research to compare web-based vs. in-person methods of training mental health providers in suicide prevention.

http://www.hsrd.research.va.gov/for_researchers/awards/margruder-091911.cfm

The September issue of Traumatic StressPoints is now available

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:01:00 -0500

The September issue includes results from the ISTSS Board election, Annual Meeting information and recurring StressPoints favorites including Book Corner, Trauma and World Literature and trauma-related research articles.

Read it now!