Dealing with invisible scars of war: PTSD in Veterans
Alexandra Dimitrova
Scholarly review . September 15, 2023 DOI: 10.70121/001c.121768 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Veterans with PTSD |
| Interventions | Evidence-based psychotherapies Pharmacotherapies Psychedelics Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy Alcohol interventions Breathing-based meditative sessions 3-MDR |
| Topics | PTSD |
| Keywords | Scars Psychoanalysis Surgery |
| Key findings | First-line psychotherapies and pharmacotherapies reduce PTSD symptoms and remission rates but remain ineffective for many veterans, while alternative treatments like psychedelic-assisted therapy and breathing-based meditation offer less effective but possible replacements. |
Abstract
The long-term effects of war are extremely present in modern society. However, mental injuries such as posttraumatic stress disorder are commonly overlooked, as they are more obscure than physical wounds and casualties. Today, PTSD continues to affect veterans, and many treatments that have been developed so far are still lacking in effectiveness or have not been thoroughly tested. Prevention treatments can target groups that match characteristics such as deployment details and demographics of those who are most likely to develop PTSD. These can include both demographics and details about deployment. HRVB and CBM-I have been able to decrease PTSD scores in certain populations. Social support, specifically from civilians, is also crucial in protecting veterans from developing PTSD or worsening the severity of PTSD symptoms. Various first-line treatments such as evidence-based psychotherapies and pharmacotherapies show significant lowering in symptoms as well as PTSD remission rates, but these treatments are still ineffective for many patients, whether this is because of personal preference or a general lack of efficacy of therapies. The use of psychedelics and psychedelic–assisted psychotherapy, alcohol interventions, breathing-based meditative sessions, and potentially 3-MDR have shown a decrease in PTSD symptoms for those who preferred not to use first-line treatments or found them to be ineffective. More research should be done to find and assess the current alternative treatments. They have generally proven to be less effective than other, common evidence-based treatments, but are still possible replacements for traditional treatments for some veterans with PTSD.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on PTSD, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychedelic Psychiatry's Brave New World. | 2020 | Review | |
| Reviewing the Potential of Psychedelics for the Treatment of PTSD | 2020 | Review | |
| Novel psychopharmacological therapies for psychiatric disorders: psilocybin and MDMA. | 2016 | Review | |
| MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD: Are memory reconsolidation and fear extinction underlying mechanisms? | 2018 | Review | |
| Clinical applications of hallucinogens: A review. | 2016 | Review |