Hospitalized patients with alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) —which is not uncommon—often have increased intensive care unit (ICU) and hospital lengths of stay, more hospital-acquired infections or sepsis and higher in-hospital mortality.
Brain Stimulation Improves Memory in Veterans with Early Alzheimer’s Disease
Transcranial magnetic stimulation, or TMS, is a technique that uses strong magnetic pulses to stimulate regions of the brain, producing electric currents that may affect neuron activity.
Prolonged Exposure Therapy Showed Some Advantages in Treating PTSD
Post-traumatic stress disorder is a prevalent and serious mental health problem among veterans. Of the veterans who received VA healthcare in 2019, 12.1% had PTSD, including 26.5% of veterans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Hardin’s Mission Is Keeping Veterans Out of Criminal Justice System
Any interaction with the criminal justice system can be a frightening, confusing experience for those being charged. It can be especially difficult to navigate for men and women who are homeless or struggling with mental health or substance abuse issues.
What Are Associations Among Panic Attacks, PTSD and SUDs in Veterans?
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been estimated to affect 12.9% of U.S. veterans, compared to the lifetime risk of PTSD in the general population which is estimated at 6.8%.
Criticism Continues About VA’s Handling of Military Sexual Trauma Claims
Has the VA improved its process of dealing with military sexual trauma, or are errors resulting in veterans being denied the care they need?
Premature Cognitive Decline Found in Young Veterans with mTBI
Between 2000 and 2018, approximately 430,000 active-duty servicemembers suffered head injuries.
Who Are Homeless Veterans and What Do They Really Need?
This city is home to the largest VAMC in the nation, as well the single largest population of U.S. veterans. Yet about 4,000 of the vets who call Los Angeles home actually have no home.
How Solar Activity Impacts Blood Pressure in Older Adults
Hypertension is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the United States.
Sleep, Mental Health Surveys Useful for Seizure Patients
How useful are mental health and sleep screening questionnaires for patients admitted to a seizure monitoring unit?
Housing Insecure Veterans Much More Likely to Have Dementia
Veterans who are at risk of being homeless have significant greater risk of having Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias compared to other veterans.
History of Self-Injury Linked to Higher Suicide Risk Among Veterans
The VA has put significant focus on reducing veteran suicide rates over the last decades. But what about those who hurt themselves while stopping short of taking their own lives?
Military Sexual Trauma Appears to Be a Risk Factor for Hypertension
Young and middle-age veterans who experienced sexual harassment and assault during military service are at an increased risk for hypertension and, potentially, its cardiovascular complications, a new study suggested.
Military Reserve Component Less Likely to Get Needed Mental Healthcare
Members of the reserve component of the U.S. military were much less likely to receive recommended mental healthcare when compared to active-duty personnel, according to a new RAND Corp. study.
PTSD Can Worsen Dying Experience for Veterans Facing End of Life
Most veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder don’t just age out of it. At their end of life, veterans with PTSD often frequently exhibit irritability with their caregivers, sleep problems, nightmares, anxiety, guilt, lack of acceptance and restlessness, according to recent research.
What Soldiers Are Most at Risk of Acting on Suicide Ideation?
The statistics are alarming. More soldiers die from self-inflicted gunshot wounds than combat injuries. Eighty-three percent of firearm deaths in the military are from suicide.
Seizures Appear to Signal Worse Cognition in TBI Patients
For hospitalized patients with moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries, more than half have seizures and abnormal periodic or rhythmic patterns observed on continuous electroencephalography monitoring (cEEG).
Battlefield Blast Exposure Linked to Mental Health Effects
Chronic mental health symptoms including post-traumatic stress, depression and neurobehavioral issues increase proportionately with blast exposure severity, according to a new study.
Lang Tests Alternative Methods to Help Veterans Recover From PTSD
Every veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder has a different experience—a different collection of symptoms, interacting in ways unique to that veteran’s life and experience.
White River Junction VAMC Pilots WHO Suicide Prevention Program at VA
After 18 months of pandemic disruption and isolation, International organizations are urging governments, health systems and nonprofits to prioritize suicide prevention. The VA may have just the program.
Navy Study Suggests Post COVID-19 Symptoms Can Affect Military Readiness
At 0.2% percent, the military’s current COVID-19 mortality rate is far lower than that of the general American public, which is just under 2%. But often those who contract and survive COVID-19 have to live with its long-term effects, regardless of the severity of their acute illness.
With a National Housing Crisis, Veteran Homelessness Remains a Concern
From 2010 to 2016, the number of veterans living on the streets dropped by half and the ending veteran homelessness within a decade appeared feasible.
LAIs Improve VHA Schizophrenia Medication Adherence
Ensuring high rates of medication adherence is one of the greatest challenges in treating schizophrenia patients at the VA and elsewhere.
Why Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Vietnam Veterans Suffer More From PTSD
Lesbian, gay and bisexual veterans who served in the Vietnam era reported more post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues than their heterosexual counterparts, and a new analysis of data from a nationwide study survey questioned whether that was related to past trauma related to sexual identity.
Insomnia Has Affected Nearly 1 in 5 Veterans During the Pandemic
Sleep is essential to mental and physical well-being, and not getting enough sleep can lead to stress or difficulties concentrating, solving problems—even fighting off infection. At the same time, stress and anxiety can also lead to disrupted sleep.
Pulse Wave Velocity Helps Assess Alzheimer’s Risk Factor
While arterial stiffening is increasingly considered an important risk factor for Alzheimers disease (AD) and related dementias, the mechanisms behind that have been poorly understood.
MDMA Shows Promise in Resolving PTSD, Depression in Veterans, Others
Treatment with methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) showed far greater effectiveness than usual care in a group of patients with post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a new study.
Problems With DoD-to-VA Transition Program Intensified by Pandemic
Transitioning from active duty military service to civilian life is difficult at the best of times. The pandemic added a host of new challenges, highlighted existing problems with the transitioning process and widened the cracks through which those veterans who are most in need of support are in danger of falling.
How Was a VA Nurse Assistant Able to Murder Seven Patients in One Year?
In May, Reta Mays, a former nurse’s assistant at VA’s Louis A. Johnson Medical Center in Clarksburg was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences—one each for the patients that she had pleaded guilty to murdering.
Many Female VA Patients Appear to Have Undiagnosed OSA
Too many women veterans remained undiagnosed with sleep apnea, even if they were at high risk of adverse outcomes, according to a new study.