Promising new treatment for PTSD revealed — how it can help veterans
NY Post
Combining virtual reality exposure with low electrical brain stimulation offers promising results for people who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, a study published Wednesday in JAMA Psychiatry found.
Although it is not systematically tracked, about 6% of Americans — and an even larger percentage of veterans — will have PTSD at some point in their lives, according to the US Department of Veterans Affairs.
The mental health condition develops after a shocking, scary or dangerous experience. It causes people to feel stressed or frightened, even when they are not in danger. Psychotherapy and medications are used to manage symptoms.
For the new study, researchers at Brown University conducted trials among 54 US veterans at the Providence Veterans Affairs Medical Center who had been diagnosed with chronic PTSD.
Some were treated with a constant, low, pain-free electrical current to the frontal lobe of their brain while they experienced six 25-minute sessions of a highly immersive sensory VR simulation of a war zone over a two- to three-week period.
Other veterans only experienced the VR simulation.
