Poor sleep quality linked to lower physical activity in people with PTSD
July 16, 2014
Science Daily/American Academy of Sleep Medicine
A new study shows that worse sleep quality predicts lower physical activity in people with post-traumatic stress disorder. Results show that PTSD was independently associated with worse sleep quality at baseline, and participants with current PTSD at baseline had lower physical activity one year later.
"We found that sleep quality was more strongly associated with physical activity one year later than was having a diagnosis of PTSD," said lead author Lisa Talbot, postdoctoral fellow at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco. "The longitudinal aspect of this study suggests that sleep may influence physical activity."
Further analysis found that sleep quality completely mediated the relationship between baseline PTSD status and physical activity at the one-year follow-up, providing preliminary evidence that the association of reduced sleep quality with reduced physical activity could comprise a behavioral link to negative health outcomes such as obesity.
"This study adds to the literature that shows that better sleep leads to healthier levels of exercise, and previous research has shown that better sleep leads to healthier food choices," said American Academy of Sleep Medicine President Dr. Timothy Morgenthaler. "It is clear that healthy sleep is an essential ingredient in the recipe for a healthy life."
"The findings also tentatively raise the possibility that sleep problems could affect individuals' willingness or ability to implement physical activity behavioral interventions," she said. "Sleep improvements might encourage exercise participation."
According to the National Center for PTSD of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, PTSD symptoms such as nightmares or flashbacks usually start soon after a traumatic event, but they may not appear until months or years later. Symptoms that last longer than four weeks, cause great distress or interfere with daily life may be a sign of PTSD.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140716123841.htm
Post-traumatic stress disorder: We need more awareness about events that trigger it
- May 19, 2014
Science Daily/University of Greenwich
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is more likely to be recognized in those suffering military combat trauma than in rape and accident victims, according to new research.
Carried out by Dr Ian Tharp, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Greenwich, the study was led by Chris Merritt, a Greenwich psychology graduate who is currently studying for a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at King's College London.
During the research, nearly 3,000 participants were shown a description of an individual experiencing identical PTSD symptoms, such as flashbacks, in relation to either military combat, a serious industrial accident or sexual assault, in particular rape.
In comparison to those shown the military scenario, participants were much less likely to recognize the symptoms as PTSD, or even consider them a mental health problem, when associated with either an industrial accident or serious sexual assault.
Dr Tharp says: "The association between PTSD and military combat experience is frequently portrayed in film and television, and the current research supports the pervasive 'traumatised veteran' stereotype.
"However, PTSD can arise from a variety of traumatic experiences, including road traffic accidents, physical or sexual assault, and natural disasters. Across the wider population, these non-military traumas are much more common.
"Furthermore, the likelihood of experiencing and subsequently developing PTSD following these type of events can be much greater than that for military combat."
Dr Tharp concludes: "The implications are that many people who develop PTSD following non-military combat traumas -- particularly rape -- are less likely to have it recognized by those around them, and are also less likely to seek help for their difficulties."
The study, carried out alongside a third researcher, Professor Adrian Furnham of University College London, was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.
Chris Merritt adds: "The results show that greater awareness of the key symptoms of trauma is needed within the community in order to identify possible cases of PTSD. This enhanced understanding would also help support services, such as charities, guide individuals towards professional treatments."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/05/140519105812.htm
Combat Veterans Suffering from PTSD, 'Fear Circuitry' in the Brain Never Rests
May 18, 2013 —
Science Daily/NYU Langone Medical Center
Chronic trauma can inflict lasting damage to brain regions associated with fear and anxiety. Previous imaging studies of people with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, have shown that these brain regions can over-or under-react in response to stressful tasks, such as recalling a traumatic event or reacting to a photo of a threatening face. Now, researchers at NYU School of Medicine have explored for the first time what happens in the brains of combat veterans with PTSD in the absence of external triggers.
Their results, published in Neuroscience Letters, and presented today at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatry Association in San Francisco, show that the effects of trauma persist in certain brain regions even when combat veterans are not engaged in cognitive or emotional tasks, and face no immediate external threats. The findings shed light on which areas of the brain provoke traumatic symptoms and represent a critical step toward better diagnostics and treatments for PTSD.
A chronic condition that develops after trauma, PTSD can plague victims with disturbing memories, flashbacks, nightmares and emotional instability. Among the 1.7 million men and women who have served in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, an estimated 20% have PTSD. Research shows that suicide risk is higher in veterans with PTSD. Tragically, more soldiers committed suicide in 2012 than the number of soldiers who were killed in combat in Afghanistan that year.
"It is critical to have an objective test to confirm PTSD diagnosis as self reports can be unreliable," says co-author Charles Marmar, MD, the Lucius N. Littauer Professor of Psychiatry and chair of NYU Langone's Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Marmar, a nationally recognized expert on trauma and stress among veterans, heads The Steven and Alexandra Cohen Veterans Center for the Study of Post-Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injury at NYU Langone Medical Center.
The study, led by Xiaodan Yan, a research fellow at NYU School of Medicine, examined "spontaneous" or "resting" brain activity in 104 veterans of combat from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars using functional MRI, which measures blood-oxygen levels in the brain. The researchers found that spontaneous brain activity in the amygdala, a key structure in the brain's "fear circuitry" that processes fearful and anxious emotions, was significantly higher in the 52 combat veterans with PTSD than in the 52 combat veterans without PTSD. The PTSD group also showed elevated brain activity in the anterior insula, a brain region that regulates sensitivity to pain and negative emotions.
Moreover, the PTSD group had lower activity in the precuneus, a structure tucked between the brain's two hemispheres that helps integrate information from the past and future, especially when the mind is wandering or disengaged from active thought. Decreased activity in the precuneus correlates with more severe "re-experiencing" symptoms -- that is, when victims re-experience trauma over and over again through flashbacks, nightmares and frightening thoughts.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130518153257.htm