Failings of trauma-specific and related psychological tests in detecting post-traumatic stress disorder in forensic settings.

Judges and juries tend to be particularly impressed by test data, especially quantitative test data. Psychometric tests specific for assessing the presence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are commonly employed by forensic mental health evaluators. Most of these instruments, however, have been designed to detect PTSD in treatment or research, and not forensic, settings.

DSM-5 and posttraumatic stress disorder.

The latest iteration of the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) criteria presented in The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) includes specific elaborations of the gatekeeper criteria, a new category of stressor, an expansion in the number of symptoms, addition of a new subtype of PTSD, and an enlarged text discussion that breaks new ground in defining the criteria. We first trace the rationale underlying these changes and their impact on the prevalence of PTSD diagnoses in clinical studies and then present potential implications of the new criteria for forensic assessment methodology and the detection of malingering, interpretations of criminal responsibility and mitigation, evaluation of the reliability of witnesses, the scope of claims in civil and employment cases, and eligibility for disability.

Two cases of zolpidem-associated homicide.

Zolpidem is the most commonly prescribed medication for the short-term treatment of insomnia. Adverse reactions include nightmares, confusion, and memory deficits. Reported rare adverse neuropsychiatric reactions include sensory distortions such as hallucinations.

Psychiatric-legal considerations in providing mental health assistance to disaster survivors.

This article describes psychiatric/legal issues encountered by those providing emergent care to disaster survivors.