Developing an integrated brain, behavior and biological response profile in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Autonomic Nervous System Research

Background:

• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is linked to cognitive, autonomic, and electrophysiological changes.
• Previous research indicates reduced cognitive performance, altered cortical arousal (EEG), diminished P3 amplitude in ERPs, and increased autonomic arousal in PTSD patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish an integrated profile of behavioral, brain, and autonomic alterations in PTSD.
• To determine the sensitivity and specificity of this integrated profile in discriminating PTSD from controls.

Main Methods:

• Examined cognitive function, auditory oddball event-related potentials (ERPs), autonomic function (heart rate, skin conductance), and resting EEG.
• Utilized discriminant function analysis on nine significant between-group variables from 44 individuals with PTSD and 44 controls.

Main Results:

• Four measures successfully discriminated between PTSD and non-PTSD groups: tonic arousal change, attention switching duration, working memory reaction time, and errors of commission.
• Change in tonic arousal was the most significant predictor of group membership.
• The integrated profile demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity in characterizing both groups.

Conclusions:

• An integrated biomarker profile comprising autonomic and information processing disturbances effectively characterizes PTSD.
• This profile provides a foundation for investigating its specificity to PTSD versus other anxiety disorders.