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Neurological Reactivity to Personalized Odors and Sounds in Combat-related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Title
Neurological Reactivity to Personalized Odors and Sounds in Combat-related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.
Creator
Gramlich, Michael, Neer, Sandra, Beidel, Deborah, Bohil, Corey, Batien, Bryan, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a neurophysiological procedure that offers immense clinical utility due to its cost effectiveness, ease of use, and mobile application. Using fNIRS to measure neurological reactions to personalized trauma-related cues might strengthen diagnostic screening, tailor treatment planning, and improve detection of remission among individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Odors elicit strong emotional responses but remain underutilized in...
Show moreFunctional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a neurophysiological procedure that offers immense clinical utility due to its cost effectiveness, ease of use, and mobile application. Using fNIRS to measure neurological reactions to personalized trauma-related cues might strengthen diagnostic screening, tailor treatment planning, and improve detection of remission among individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Odors elicit strong emotional responses but remain underutilized in clinical research. This fNIRS study examined whether personalizing combat-related odors and sounds to have a higher or lower match to distressing combat experiences increased the observed neurological effect among combat veterans with and without combat-related PTSD. This study gathered data from 58 male, right-handed combat veterans of Iraq or Afghanistan, ages 26 to 68, recruited from the community. The results indicated a significant increase in activation at the left ventral lateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) following an interaction between higher PTSD severity and higher match ratings for the combat-related odors (R2 = .20, p = .003; f2 = .25). Furthermore, the left VLPFC showed a significant increase in activation following an interaction between having a PTSD diagnosis and higher match ratings for the combat-related odors (R2 = .25, p = .005; f2 = .33). The findings for the combat-related sounds were less clear. The left VLPFC is associated with facilitating regulation of memory and emotional processes. Overall, the presentation of odors with higher similarity to distressing combat experiences altered the neurological response of the prefrontal cortex and may contribute to better understanding of the neurophysiological mechanisms of combat-related PTSD.
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Date Issued
2019
Identifier
CFE0007809, ucf:52357
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007809
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder or Combat Experience? A Functional Near-infrared Spectroscopy Study of Trauma-related Auditory and Olfactory Cues
Title
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder or Combat Experience? A Functional Near-infrared Spectroscopy Study of Trauma-related Auditory and Olfactory Cues.
Creator
Gramlich, Michael, Neer, Sandra, Bowers, Clint, Beidel, Deborah, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
While the clinical communities are aware of the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among OEF/OIF/OND veterans, further efforts are necessary to bolster comprehensive strategies for assessment and treatment. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether a combat-related PTSD symptom provocation paradigm would elicit unique neurological responses via functional near-infrared spectroscopy across three groups (-) combat veterans with PTSD, combat veterans without PTSD, and...
Show moreWhile the clinical communities are aware of the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among OEF/OIF/OND veterans, further efforts are necessary to bolster comprehensive strategies for assessment and treatment. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether a combat-related PTSD symptom provocation paradigm would elicit unique neurological responses via functional near-infrared spectroscopy across three groups (-) combat veterans with PTSD, combat veterans without PTSD, and nonmilitary participants without PTSD. Results indicated that combat veterans with PTSD demonstrated significant activation during exposure to a trauma-related sound compared to nonmilitary personnel at channels 14 (d = 1.03) and 15 (d = 1.30) and combat veterans without PTSD at channel 14 (d = 0.87). Specifically, this increased neural activation was approximately located in the right superior/medial prefrontal cortex (BA 9/10), associated with evaluating cue-familiarity and emotional detachment. Results were less clear with respect to a combat-related odor. These results suggest a specific neurophysiological response to trauma-related cues and if replicated, may offer a biomarker for combat-related PTSD. Such a response could provide incremental validity over diagnostic assessments alone and assist in planning and monitoring of treatment outcome.
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Date Issued
2017
Identifier
CFE0006596, ucf:51297
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006596
Role of Sleep in Exposure Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in OIF/OEF Combat Veterans
Title
Role of Sleep in Exposure Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in OIF/OEF Combat Veterans.
Creator
Mesa, Franklin, Beidel, Deborah, Neer, Sandra, Bowers, Clint, Ni, Liqiang, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Exposure therapy is theorized to reduce posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology by promoting habituation/extinction of fear responses to trauma-related cues. Empirical evidence indicates that emotional memory, including habituation/extinction learning, is enhanced by sleep. However, service members with combat-related PTSD often report disturbed sleep. In this study, quality of sleep and indicators of extinction learning were examined in veterans of recent wars who had completed...
Show moreExposure therapy is theorized to reduce posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology by promoting habituation/extinction of fear responses to trauma-related cues. Empirical evidence indicates that emotional memory, including habituation/extinction learning, is enhanced by sleep. However, service members with combat-related PTSD often report disturbed sleep. In this study, quality of sleep and indicators of extinction learning were examined in veterans of recent wars who had completed an exposure-based PTSD intervention. Fifty-five participants were categorized into two groups based on self-reported quality of sleep: low sleep disruption severity (LSDS; N = 29) and high sleep disruption severity (HSDS; N = 26). Participants in the LSDS group exhibited faster habituation to their traumatic memories and reported less PTSD symptomatology during and following treatment relative to participants in the HSDS group. These findings indicate that individuals with combat-related PTSD reporting less disturbed sleep experience greater extinction learning during exposure therapy. Thus, incorporating interventions that target PTSD-related sleep disturbances may be one way to maximize exposure therapy outcomes in service members with PTSD.
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Date Issued
2016
Identifier
CFE0006355, ucf:51520
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006355
Sleep Disturbances Among Combat Military Veterans: A Comparative Study
Title
Sleep Disturbances Among Combat Military Veterans: A Comparative Study.
Creator
Stout, Jeremy, Beidel, Deborah, Neer, Sandra, Bowers, Clint, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The sleep characteristics of 37 military combat veterans (17 with PTSD and 20 without PTSD) of recent wars were analyzed to determine if combat deployment, with its resultant wartime sleep restriction, may be an alternative explanation for the sleep duration complaints found among combat veterans with PTSD (as determined by PCL-M scores). Participants completed sleep actigraphy and a self-report measure of sleep duration over a 1-week period. Although strongly correlated, a comparison of...
Show moreThe sleep characteristics of 37 military combat veterans (17 with PTSD and 20 without PTSD) of recent wars were analyzed to determine if combat deployment, with its resultant wartime sleep restriction, may be an alternative explanation for the sleep duration complaints found among combat veterans with PTSD (as determined by PCL-M scores). Participants completed sleep actigraphy and a self-report measure of sleep duration over a 1-week period. Although strongly correlated, a comparison of subjective (e.g., self-report) and objective (e.g., actigraphy) sleep duration revealed a significant difference in sleep duration based on method of assessment. With respect to group differences, actigraphy data did not reveal a significant difference in sleep duration based on the presence of PTSD, whereas there was a significant difference based on self-report. Veterans without PTSD self- reported a significantly longer sleep duration than what was recorded by actigraphy; a difference of one hour and 11 minutes (p = 0.000); the difference was one hour and nine minutes. In an effort to determine why veterans without PTSD perceived that they slept longer than they actually did, factors related to sleep quality were examined. The results indicated that measures of hyper arousal (anger, anxiety, nightmares) were significantly correlated with sleep duration, suggesting a pattern of autonomic arousal that is known to interfere with restful sleep. Further research is necessary to determine if the sleep of veteran with PTSD is actually different from that of combat veterans without PTSD, and if such differences are actually amenable to treatment for PTSD.
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Date Issued
2015
Identifier
CFE0006232, ucf:51055
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006232