Thursday, September 5, 2013

Almost half of PTSD patients are not identified

I was reading yet another article on a PTSD study The Hunt Is On for Biological Signs of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder when I saw one of the most interesting points aside from the fact the article also addresses the difference between the rate of PTSD for veterans from civilians. This pretty much should silence anyone thinking veterans are seeking a "free ride" to anything.
“The overall response rate is only about 50 percent, and there tend to be relapses,” says Roger Pitman, a PTSD expert at Massachusetts General Hospital, who is leading the clinical arm of the consortium.

“We may be able to develop patterns of biological abnormalities that will help to predict which treatment a person is most likely to benefit from.”

PTSD is currently diagnosed solely on the basis of clinical interviews, and patients sometimes misrepresent their feelings, often because they are trying to avoid the memories and emotions associated with their trauma. Nearly half of PTSD patients are not identified, by some estimates.

No comments:

Post a Comment

If it is not helpful, do not be hurtful. Spam removed so do not try putting up free ad.