Study finds brain changes for veterans with TBI and PTSD
June 04, 2019
A new study recently published by the Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation found that veterans and active
The connection made by the study will need further investigation and research, but is an exciting discovery, nonetheless. PTSD and TBI are common conditions among veterans, and potentially devastating ones.
The brains of the subjects were examined via an MRI. The subjects with combat-related PTSD and mild TBI had amygdala size differences that were statistically significant verses those who only had mild TBI.
Researchers involved with the study state that the amygdala is involved with threat perception and arousal and that the growth of the area may be linked to hyperactivity. They likened the enlarged amygdala to possibly being like scar tissue in other areas of the body, but do not yet know if it forms as a healing mechanism or if it perhaps causes symptoms of PTSD to occur or worsen.
The implications of this finding are currently unknown but could possibly change the way veterans are initially tested for PTSD or how they are screened and monitored after they start treatment for symptoms related to the condition.