Reevaluating the association between emergency department heart rate and the development of posttraumatic stress disorder: A public health approach.

BACKGROUND: Preliminary investigations in select samples of trauma survivors presenting to acute care settings suggest an association between elevated emergency department heart rate (HR) and the subsequent development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Other studies suggest no association, however. METHOD: In a prospective cohort study of a population-based sample of 161 acutely injured surgical inpatients, HR was assessed at initial presentation to the emergency department. Symptoms of PTSD were assessed with the PTSD Checklist at the time of the surgical inpatient hospitalization and 1, 4-6, and 12 months postinjury. RESULTS: Emergency department HR > or = 95 beats per minute (BPM) was a significant independent predictor of PTSD symptoms in analyses that adjusted for relevant injury, clinical, and demographic characteristics. This HR cutoff demonstrated modest specificity (range 60%-65%) and sensitivity (range 49%-63%) for the prediction of chronic PTSD. CONCLUSIONS: We found an independent association between elevated emergency department HR > or = 95 BPM and PTSD symptoms in a representative sample of injured acute care inpatients. Future investigations that incorporate clinical epidemiologic methods in the study of acute care biological parameters have the potential to improve the quality of mental health care delivered to injured survivors of individual and mass trauma.     

The association of traumatic experiences and posttraumatic stress disorder with health care utilization in the elderly - a German population based study

Objective

Traumatic experiences (TE) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are related to impaired mental and physical health and to increased health care utilization (HCU). However, general population studies simultaneously investigating the association of TE and PTSD with HCU in the elderly are lacking to date.

Methods

A representative sample of 1456 people aged 60-85 years from the German general population was examined using self-rating instruments for TE, PTSD, HCU and physical health (PH).

Results

In regression analyses including age and gender, TE are significantly associated with increased probability of visits to specialists and to mental health professionals, and of hospitalization, but not with the frequency of HCU. Current PTSD is significantly associated with increased probability of visits to mental health professionals and of hospitalization, and with increased frequency of general practitioner visits, of specialist visits, and of visits to mental health professionals. In two mediation models, the relationships between TE and PTSD, respectively, with HCU were weakened but remained significant after including PTSD and physical morbidity, respectively.

Conclusion

These results indicate that both trauma and PTSD are positively associated to some indicators of HCU. Posttraumatic stress disorder has a weak mediating role in the association of TE and HCU. Physical health has a weak mediating role in the association of PTSD and HCU.     

Size versus shape differences: contrasting voxel-based and volumetric analyses of the anterior cingulate cortex in individuals with acute posttraumatic stress disorder.

BACKGROUND: Two studies found morphological differences in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) of individuals with chronic posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We sought to replicate and extend these findings in a sample of individuals with acute PTSD. METHODS: The ACCs of individuals with acute PTSD (n = 14) and matched healthy control subjects (n = 14) were compared using voxel-based morphometry (VBM), semi-automated volumetric analyses, and probabilistic maps. Posttraumatic stress disorder diagnosis was ascertained by a psychologist using a structured interview. RESULTS: Voxel-based morphometry analyses revealed significantly less gray-matter density in the right pregenual ACC and in the left insula of the PTSD group. However, volumetric analyses of the ACC revealed no significant differences between groups. Probabilistic maps of the labels of the pregenual ACC indicated that the difference between groups in gray matter density was due to shape differences. CONCLUSIONS: Although there are no volumetric differences in the ACC of acute PTSD individuals compared with normal control subjects, significant shape differences exist, which might indicate volumetric differences in the surrounding structures.     

The cerebellum after trauma: Resting‐state functional connectivity of the cerebellum in posttraumatic stress disorder and its dissociative subtype

The cerebellum plays a key role not only in motor function but also in affect and cognition. Although several psychopathological disorders have been associated with overall cerebellar dysfunction, it remains unclear whether different regions of the cerebellum contribute uniquely to psychopathology. Accordingly, we compared seed‐based resting‐state functional connectivity of the anterior cerebellum (lobule IV–V), of the posterior cerebellum (Crus I), and of the anterior vermis across posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; n = 65), its dissociative subtype (PTSD + DS; n = 37), and non‐trauma‐exposed healthy controls (HC; n = 47). Here, we observed decreased functional connectivity of the anterior cerebellum and anterior vermis with brain regions involved in somatosensory processing, multisensory integration, and bodily self‐consciousness (temporo‐parietal junction, postcentral gyrus, and superior parietal lobule) in PTSD + DS as compared to PTSD and HC. Moreover, the PTSD + DS group showed increased functional connectivity of the posterior cerebellum with cortical areas related to emotion regulation (ventromedial prefrontal and orbito‐frontal cortex, subgenual anterior cingulum) as compared to PTSD. By contrast, PTSD showed increased functional connectivity of the anterior cerebellum with cortical areas associated with visual processing (fusiform gyrus), interoceptive awareness (posterior insula), memory retrieval, and contextual processing (hippocampus) as compared to HC. Finally, we observed decreased functional connectivity between the posterior cerebellum and prefrontal regions involved in emotion regulation, in PTSD as compared to HC. These findings not only highlight the crucial role of each cerebellar region examined in the psychopathology of PTSD but also reveal unique alterations in functional connectivity distinguishing the dissociative subtype of PTSD versus PTSD.