Post-traumatic stress disorder in an elderly combat veteran: a case report

In this case report, an elderly combat veteran with a chronic course of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that was untreated for nearly 60 years was evaluated and treated with a combination of medication and graded exposure psychotherapy. To the best of our knowledge, there have been no reports on graded exposure in the elderly. The course of treatment lessened the key symptom domains of PTSD. Comorbid depression was also lessened. Although a single case report, it would appear that elderly patients do respond to psychotherapeutic techniques such as graded exposure therapy. Given the large percentage of the elderly population that has witnessed combat and due to the continuing military conflicts that the United States has been involved in over recent decades, treatments for PTSD in an aging population will be necessary.