Too many women veterans remained undiagnosed with sleep apnea, even if they were at high risk of adverse outcomes, according to a new study.
Sleep Disorders More Prevalent in Army Vs. Other Services
While sleep problems are widespread in active-duty U.S. military servicemembers, Army personnel appear to have the most problems.
Rates of Insomnia Disorders in Younger Veterans ‘Alarming’
Sleep researchers at the VA have sent out a distress signal about the high rates of insomnia disorder in younger veterans.
ADHD, Mental Health Comorbidities Affect Military Applicant Pool
As a common childhood diagnosis, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) also affects the pool of potential military applicants.
Younger, Not Older, Veterans With Epilepsy Tend to Have Lower Quality of Life
For veterans with epilepsy, quality of life is most negatively impacted by frequency of seizures, according to a new study. And that, plus some other factors, usually means that younger veterans have a tougher time with epilepsy than older ones.
Cognitive Disorders Common in Older Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Patients
Cognitive impairment can be a typical comorbidity in epilepsy, appearing in a significant number of older adults with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), the most common form of focal epilepsy, according to a new study.
Home Videos Help VA Physicians Accurately Diagnosis Epilepsy
The COVID-19 pandemic has presented new challenges for VA healthcare delivery, although access to care has always been difficult for veterans who either live in remote areas or have conditions that require specialist care.
Use of Psychotherapy for PTSD Varies Substantially by VA Region, Facility
For more than a decade, the VA has pushed evidence-based psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder, and treatments nationally have slowly and steadily increased.
Multiple Factors Interact to Predict Parkinson’s Disease Dementia
The common image of Parkinson’s disease focuses on tremors and unstable movement, but for many patients with the disorder, the possibility of dementia worries them more. The concern is well justified—about 30% of patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) suffer from dementia.
IG: Mismanagement Contributed to Veteran Death at Augusta, GA, VAMC
AUGUSTA—A patient at the Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center in Augusta, GA, was held in restraints for nearly three days, contributing to the blood clots in his legs that resulted in his death, a VA inspector general report found last month. The report outlines...
APA Recommends Ongoing Use of Long-Acting Injectables for SMI
WASHINGTON — Even as VA facilities open up nationwide, administrators and others are keeping a wary eye on the possibility of a significant second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the fall. U.S. healthcare systems are preparing now for a sharp increase in cases in the...
Study Urges Integration of Co-Morbid Mental Health, Substance Use Treatment
Many mental health programs will not accept patients with active substance use issues. That effectively denies treatment to many veterans who have served in the past 20 years, among whom co-occurring substance use disorders and mental health disorders are particularly common.
Switch to Long-Acting Injectable Reduces VA Costs for Schizophrenia Care
Schizophrenia can be frightening and life-changing. Common symptoms such as disorganized thinking and speech, lack of expressive emotion, social withdrawal, neglect of self-care, hallucinations and delusions alienate individuals with schizophrenia from others and create barriers to day-to-day functioning in society.
Dementia Rates Increased With Serious Mental Illness
Because VHA provides a continuum of care over the life course, the healthcare system has need to better understand what effect bipolar disorder and schizophrenia have on veterans’ risk of dementia.
Mild TBI Exacerbates Issues for Early Binge Drinkers
Does early adolescent binge drinking (BD) increases the risk for and/or severity of psychopathology in post-9/11 veterans, and how does mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) affect the risk?
Most At-Risk Veterans Don’t Get Suicide Counseling
Despite all of the focus on preventing suicides in those who have served in the military, a significant proportion of veterans with suicidal ideation do not take advantage of available mental health treatment, according to a new study.
Psychotherapeutic Services Can Be Critical for Veterans With Multiple Sclerosis
Some Mental Health Issues More Common in MS Patients HARTFORD, CT—Emotional disorders are common in patients with multiple sclerosis and can complicate treatment, according to the American Academy of Neurology. The specialty group noted on its website that one-third...
VA Takes Multi-track Approach for Veterans with Serious Mental Illness
WASHINGTON—The COVID-19 pandemic closed many hospitals and clinics across the U.S. this spring, but that didn’t stop the VA from supporting veterans with serious mental illness. To the contrary, it led to an expansion of service approaches that may prove valuable even...
Pandemic Shows Value of Long-Acting Injectables for Severe Mental Illness
VA research has found that about half of veterans with diagnosed schizophrenia or bipolar I disorder have attempted suicide. Nearly 70% of veterans with schizophrenia and more than 82% of those with bipolar disorder reported suicidal ideation or behavior. That’s why it is so critically important to maintain their medications during a crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Long-acting injectable drugs has helped the VA do that.
Veterans with PTSD Struggle During Pandemic; VA Offers Support
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION, VT—The COVID-19 pandemic has upturned lives all across America. People have become ill, lost jobs and friends and relatives and found themselves isolated at home, just when they need social connection and emotional support most. In a recent...
Severe Mental Illness Tied to 50% Less Overall Mortality in Female Veterans
Exact Reasons Why Remain Mysterious MIAMI—Since 2008, approximately 6,000 veterans have died from suicide every year. In 2017, that averaged out to just under 17 suicides among previously activated former service members each day.* “Suicide is a national public health...
VA Survey: Health Issues Are Greatest Concerns for New Veterans
Most Report Satisfaction with Work Life, Social Well-Being BOSTON — Health issues plague veterans, even when they first leave military service and are viewed as a bigger problem than finding work or establishing civilian social relationships. That’s according to a new...
Study Finding Could Detect Alzheimer’s Disease Earlier
SAN DIEGO — People who were diagnosed as having “objectively-defined subtle cognitive difficulties” appeared to accumulate amyloid more quickly than those deemed cognitively normal, according to a new study. That information could potentially improve early detection...
Seeing Combat Can Make Aging More Difficult for Veterans
PORTLAND, OR—Being exposed to combat makes a significant difference in how military veterans fare during aging, according to a new study, which also found that the experience increases the risk for depression and anxiety later in life. “There are a lot factors of...
Combat PTSD/TBI Increases Amygdala Size in Military Patients
SAN DIEGO — The region of the brain that processes fear, anxiety, aggression and similar emotions is larger in veterans and active-duty service members with combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder and mild traumatic brain injury than those with brain injuries only.
Processes Similar in Schizophrenia, Psychotic Biopolar Disorder
NASHVILLE, TN — Processes leading to impairment in schizophrenia and psychotic bipolar disorder might be more similar than previously assumed, according to a new study.
Some Veterans Want Family Involved With Mental Health Treatment
LOS ANGELES — One of the most difficult issues in caring for adults with severe mental illness, including at the VA, is balancing privacy regulations with family members’ desire to be in the know.
Ensuring Community Providers Meet Veteran Suicide Prevention Standards
WASHINGTON — As leaders from across multiple federal agencies begin work on a roadmap to combat veteran suicide, they are searching for ways to turn existing efforts in towns, cities, counties and neighborhoods across the country into a net that can help catch struggling veterans.
Bergendahl Uses Video Gaming to Help Fellow Veterans Recover
Mat Bergendahl, MS, LPC, was with the Air Force Security Forces when the United States invaded Iraq in 2003. Like many servicemembers, he managed to bring along some personal effects. And, like many people his age, that included his PlayStation 2. For many in...
Mental Health Treatment Alone Won’t Stem Veteran Suicides
Joint House VA, Military Subcommittee Hearing Tackles Issue WASHINGTON—In a rare joint hearing by the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel and VA Subcommittee on Health, legislators examined how DoD and VA are working to address the increase in...