Two researchers are trying to better understand the relationship between mental-health issues and lower urinary tract symptoms. Their work in the area began after observing that servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan had complaints similar to older patients, including urgent incontinence. 

Tool Can Help Prevent Compassion Fatigue or ‘Secondary Traumatic Stress’
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCHORD, WA— One of the most insidious things about trauma is that its effects can spread far beyond the initial event.

ANN ARBOR, MI — For nearly two years, the Food and Drug Administration has been issuing safety advisories about the risks of abnormal heart rhythms with higher doses of the antidepressant citalopram hydrobromide.

WASHINGTON — Then-Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta and VA Secretary Eric K. Shinseki asked for a plan to speed up integration of electronic health records late last year.

HOUSTON — As researchers delve deeper into the pathophysiology of PTSD, the complex interplay among the disease’s symptoms becomes more transparent, opening the possibility of new treatments.

FORT KNOX, KY - As the services draw down forces, standards for medical waivers for recruits apparently are tightening, especially when it comes to mental health issues.

Non-Pharmacologic Approaches Being Tested, More Data Gathered
PITTSBURGH - Antidepressants and antipsychotic medications are being overused or prescribed inappropriately for residents of VA Community Living Centers (CLCs), according to recent research.

WASHINGTON —VA’s announcement that 1,900 mental-health staff will be added to its roster is more reactive than proactive, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki told legislators at a recent hearing.  

The number of veterans treated at the VA for bipolar disorder increased more than 37% in an eight-year period. Clinicians are challenged both by the rapid increase in cases and the high side-effect profile of lithium, the first-line treatment for the disorder.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. military continues to use improper processes to diagnose significant numbers of servicemembers with pre-existing personality disorders (PD) and then discharge them, according to government documents obtained by an advocacy group.