Feasibility of EMDR toward Personality Functioning in Older Adults with PTSD.

Objectives: Severe posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in older adults (≥60 years) has been found to be associated with maladaptive personality functioning and personality disorders (PD). Emerging evidence in adults supports that reprocessing adverse events with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) could improve personality functioning and reduce full PDdiagnosis.

Methods: A multicenterfeasibilitystudy in 24 older PTSD-patients receiving weekly EMDR-sessions for either 3, 6 or 9 months.

Biomarkers associated with cognitive impairment in post-traumatic stress disorder: A systematic review of current evidence.

Objective: This systematic review aimed at synthesizing current evidence on biomarkers associated with cognitive impairment (CI) in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted for studies assessing biomarkers associated with CI in PTSD.

Results: Of the 10,149 titles screened, 8 studies met our inclusion criteria.

A First Exploration: Can Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Improve Cognition in Older Adults With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder?

Objectives: In older adults, PTSD is associated with decreased verbal learning and executive dysfunction. Therefore, feasibility of EMDR-treatment to improve cognitive performance in older adults with PTSD was examined. Additionally, we investigated pre-treatment correlation with often co-occurring risk factors for cognitive decline (sleep problems, depressive disorder, physical inactivity, childhood traumatic events).

Psychiatric comorbidities in older adults with posttraumatic stress disorder: A systematic review.

Background: Psychiatric comorbidity is high in adults with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with up to 90% having at least one additional condition, and two-thirds having two or more other diagnoses. With an increasing aging population in industrialized counties, knowing which psychiatric disorders frequently co-occur in older adults with PTSD can have implications to improve diagnosis and treatment. This systematic literature review explores the current empirical literature on psychiatric comorbidity in older adults with PTSD.

The mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and exposure to other potentially traumatic events up to old age.

We investigated whether the impact of potentially traumatic events (PTEs) on trauma-related symptoms changes across the transitional adult lifespan (i.e., 16-100 years old) and if this association differs for self-reported COVID-19-related PTEs compared to other PTEs.

The feasibility of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) for older adults with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and comorbid psychiatric and somatic disorders.

Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the feasibility of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy in older adults with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and to explicitly include information about presence of the comorbid psychiatric and somatic disorders as well as a history of traumatic events at treatment start.

Method: A nonrandomized feasibility study in a multicenter design was conducted with 25 older PTSD patients (60-84 years). Treatment consisted of weekly 1-hour EMDR sessions for PTSD during 3, 6, or maximum 9 months.

Feasibility of EMDR in Older Adults with PTSD to Reduce Frailty and Improve Quality of Life.

Objectives: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after exposure to multiple (childhood) trauma's is strongly associated with accelerated aging and high psychiatric and somatic comorbidity, influencing frailty and Quality of Life (QoL) in older adults. Eye Movement Desensitization therapy (EMDR) addresses psychological and physiologic symptoms stemming from adverse life events and therefore could influence frailty and QoL in older adults.

Methods: We conducted a multi-center feasibility study (two psychiatric hospitals) in Dutch older outpatients (N = 24; ≥60 years) with PTSD.

The Need for a Diagnostic Instrument to Assess Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in People with Dementia: Findings from a Delphi Study.

Cognitive and behavioral aspects may mask posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in people with dementia. PTSD severely lowers quality of life in people with dementia. Proper recognition of PTSD is essential to ensure adequate treatment.

The effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors on memory functioning in older adults: A systematic literature review.

Introduction: Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are commonly prescribed to older adults. In contrast to young subjects, it is unclear whether older adults may be vulnerable to cognitive side effects. Serotonin is involved in cognitive functions (e.

A first insight into the clinical manifestation of posttraumatic stress disorder in dementia: a systematic literature review.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a prevalent disorder worldwide and often co-occurs in dementia. Both have a major impact on disease burden and quality of life. PTSD may be difficult to recognize in dementia and a structured diagnostic method is lacking.

Comorbidity rates of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in dementia: a systematic literature review.

: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has been described as an independent risk factor for cognitive decline and dementia. At the same time, cognitive deterioration and increased loss experiences in dementia may increase liability for the reactivation of traumatic memories and thereby PTSD symptoms. : In order to investigate co-occurrence of PTSD in dementia this systematic literature review summarizes all the available evidence on reported comorbidity rates of PTSD in patients with dementia.

Comparing Intensive Trauma-Focused Treatment Outcome on PTSD Symptom Severity in Older and Younger Adults.

Objective: To examine the treatment outcome of an intensive trauma-focused treatment program for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in older and younger adults.

Methods: A non-randomized outcome study was conducted with 62 consecutively admitted older PTSD patients (60-78 years) and 62 younger PTSD patients (19-58 years), matched on gender and availability of follow-up data. Patients participated in an intensive eight-day trauma-focused treatment program consisting of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), prolonged exposure (PE), physical activity, and group psycho-education.

Selective Serotonin Reuptake-Inhibitors for Symptom-Based Treatment of Borderline Personality Disorders in Older Adults: An International Delphi Study.

Objective: International guidelines on symptom-based treatment of borderline personality disorders (BPD) in older adults are lacking. The number of older adults (≥ 65 years) with borderline personality disorder is rising. Effectiveness of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) on symptoms of BPD has only been investigated in younger adults and results are ambiguous.

[Pharmacotherapy of a 67-year old female with borderline personality disorder].

Pharmacotherapy in older adults with personality disorders is very complicated. On the one hand, this is caused by interference of the personality disorder in the therapeutic relationship. On the other hand, age specific factors, such as polypharmacy and changing pharmacokinetics and -dynamics play an important complicating role.

[Pharmacotherapy in older adults with personality disorders: a new area of attention].

Background: Pharmacotherapy in older adults with personality disorders (PD) is a new and important area of attention. Nowadays, symptom based pharmacotherapy in older adults with PD is based on multidisciplinary guidelines, which are constructed on research performed in patients up to 50 years of age. There is no specific guideline for older adults with PD.

A Life Span Perspective on Borderline Personality Disorder.

Purpose Of Review: To provide an update of a life span perspective on borderline personality disorder (BPD). We address the life span course of BPD, and discuss possible implications for assessment, treatment, and research.

Recent Findings: BPD first manifests itself in adolescence and can be distinguished reliably from normal adolescent development.

Can formulation affect tryptophan depletion results? Hints from studies in experimental panic.

Rationale: Acute Tryptophan Depletion (ATD) is a specific serotonergic challenge tool. Central serotonergic effects of different ATD procedures are possibly not those that are usually assumed.

Objectives: In this paper we review data of ATD in an experimental fear model to investigate whether and how methodological differences may affect fear outcomes.

Sex differences in the effect of acute tryptophan depletion on declarative episodic memory: a pooled analysis of nine studies.

Acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) studies have shown that serotonin plays a role in learning and memory processes. In this study, we performed a pooled analysis of nine ATD studies in order to examine the nature of the memory-impairing effects of ATD and mediating factors, such as gender, age and vulnerability for disease in which disturbed serotonin was hypothesized to play a role. All studies that were used in this pooled analysis assessed declarative episodic memory using a verbal learning task paradigm.

Tryptophan modulation and cognition.

The interest in the function of the serotonergic system in relation to cognition stems from three sources: (1) the association of depression, cognitive dysfunction and 5-HT dysregulation; (2) the association of drug-induced 5-HT dysregulation and cognitive dysfunction; and (3) the association of cognitive performance and serotonergic function per se. We performed several experiments in subjects at risk for cognitive impairment and in healthy volunteers, in which 5-HT was manipulated by means of either tryptophan depletion or tryptophan loading. The results show that tryptophan and cognitive performance are associated in a complex non-linear fashion.

Acute tryptophan depletion slows gastric emptying in females.

Serotonin (5-HT) is an important neurotransmitter involved in the brain-gut axis. It is possible to lower the 5-HT level in the body by means of a nutritional intervention using an amino acid mixture; the acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) method. We studied the effect of ATD on gastric emptying in healthy females, who received both ATD and placebo in a random order.

Mood, prolactin and cortisol responses following intravenous L-tryptophan challenge: evidence for serotonergic vulnerability in first-degree relatives of bipolar patients.

Central serotonergic vulnerability indicated by altered mood and neuroendocrine responses to an intravenous (i.v.) tryptophan (Trp) challenge was assessed in healthy adult unaffected first-degree relatives of bipolar disorder (BD) patients (n = 30) (family history; FH).

Stress, cortisol and memory as markers of serotonergic vulnerability.

Objectives: In the present paper the association of stress-induced cortisol with memory impairment is discussed Methods: An experiment is described in which an attempt is made to block stress-induced cortisol by lowering 5-HT neurotransmission by means of acute tryptophan depletion (ATD). Forty-five healthy control subjects participated in the experiment.

Results: Stress-induced peak cortisol and immediate memory performance were negatively associated.