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Tag: post traumatic stress
06/05/2023

The Impact of Wearable Technology on Mental Health and Wellness

Article Excerpt: The impact of wearable technology on mental health and wellness is a topic that has been gaining increasing attention in recent years. As the use of wearable devices such as smartwatches, fitness trackers, and even smart clothing becomes more widespread, researchers and mental health professionals are exploring the potential benefits and drawbacks of these devices on our mental well-being.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/3jj87ywt

Article Source: CityLife

01/31/2023

PTSD Study Uses Precision Medicine Tech from AiCure

Article Excerpt: AiCure’s AI-powered digital biomarker solution enables remote detection of subtle changes in a patient’s health status and response to treatment by capturing audio and visual data between clinic visits. Accessed through AiCure’s Patient Connect application, patients use their smartphone’s front-facing camera to complete brief assessments. AiCure’s algorithm then analyzes behavior, such as emotional expressivity, physical movement and speech patterns. By frequently aggregating these sensitive, objective insights, AiCure empowers pharmaceutical companies to improve their understanding of the disease and treatment side effects, elevating the integrity of their trial data, and optimizing patient outcomes.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/yystxpws

Article Source: Applied Clinical Trials

11/29/2022

Telepsychiatry Collaborative Care Found Effective for Treatment of Complex Disorders in Rural Areas

Article Excerpt: Telepsychiatry collaborative care (TCC) can help primary care clinicians working in rural or underserved areas to identify and treat patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and bipolar disorder with more confidence. These were the findings of a report published today in Psychiatric Services, which describes how care managers, primary care clinicians, and telepsychiatrists work together to support these patients.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/2k23dv49

Article Source: Psychiatric News

05/23/2022

Uncovering heterogeneous associations of disaster-related traumatic experiences with subsequent mental health problems: A machine learning approach

Shiba K, Daoud A, Kino S, Nishi D, Kondo K, and Kawachi I. (2022), Uncovering heterogeneous associations of disaster-related traumatic experiences with subsequent mental health problems: A machine learning approach. Psychiatry Clin. Neurosci., 76: 97-105. https://doi-org.dartmouth.idm.oclc.org/10.1111/pcn.13322

Researchers investigated the heterogeneous effects of disaster-related traumatic experiences on post-disaster mental health problems, using a new machine learning approach. Data was derived from a prospective cohort study of Japanese older adults (65 and older) in an area severely affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011. Baseline data were from 7 months before the earthquake (N=4,957 participants) and two follow-ups were conducted 2.5 and 5.5 years after the earthquake (n=3,567 and n=2,781 respectively). Disaster-related traumatic experiences were defined as home loss and loss of loved ones due to the disaster. Depressive symptoms and posttraumatic stress symptoms were assessed at the two follow-up time points. Researchers applied a novel machine learning approach called the generalized random forest algorithm to estimate the conditional average treatment effects of the disaster damages on mental health outcomes. Results showed significant heterogeneity in the impact of disaster damages across individuals, with unique patterns in characteristics of individuals who were more severely impacted. As an example, the most vulnerable group tended to be from lower socioeconomic status with preexisting depressive symptoms. The study demonstrates that this machine learning method can identify heterogeneity in mental health problems  among respondents following a disaster event. Analyzing such heterogeneity may be beneficial in designing future post-disaster mental health interventions.

01/06/2022

Mental Health Tech: Help Is On the Way

Article Excerpt: Today, mental health tech is having a moment. Hundreds of millions of individuals worldwide cope with mental health concerns. The World Health Organization estimates that 300 million people suffer from depression and another 260 million suffer from anxiety disorders. There have been few breakthroughs in mental health pharmaceuticals in nearly three decades. However, mental health tech is doing a great deal to help sufferers.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/ycxy254y

Article Source: The Tech Report

12/06/2021

The Therapists Using AI to Make Therapy Better

Article Excerpt: Researchers have tried to study talking therapy for years to unlock the secrets of why some therapists get better results than others. It can be as much art as science, based on the experience and gut instinct of qualified therapists. It’s been virtually impossible to fully quantify what works and why—until now… AI is changing that equation. The type of machine learning that carries out automatic translation can quickly analyze vast amounts of language. That gives researchers access to an endless, untapped source of data: the language therapists use. Researchers believe they can use insights from that data to give therapy a long-overdue boost. The result could be that more people get better, and stay better.

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/ysxav3fj

Article Source: MIT Technology Review

11/17/2021

A Telehealth Effort to Treat PTSD and Bipolar Disorder in Rural Areas Showed ‘Huge Gains.’ Now Comes the Hard Part

Article Excerpt: A multiyear effort to pipe big-city mental health providers to rural communities over video accomplished a trifecta of telehealth victories: It reached people who wouldn’t otherwise have access to mental health care; it tackled difficult diagnoses that don’t have simple answers; and it stretched how many people the most skilled providers can treat. Now comes the inevitable question that follows any technology breakthrough: Does it scale?

Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/umu55tp7

Article Source: STAT

09/27/2021

Outcomes of a Health Informatics Technology-Supported Behavioral Activation Training for Care Managers in a Collaborative Care Program

Bauer, AM, Jakupcak, M, Hawrilenko, M, Bechtel, J, Arao, R, & Fortney, JC (2021). Outcomes of a health informatics technology-supported behavioral activation training for care managers in a collaborative care program. Families, Systems, & Health, 39(1), 89–100. https://doi.org/10.1037/fsh0000523

This study tested a remote technology-based training for 34 care managers in 12 rural federally qualified health centers in 3 states to deliver behavioral activation with patients who had posttraumatic stress disorder or bipolar disorder. The training included self-directed readings, videos, virtual meetings for role-plays and skill assessment, an electronic checklist, and group virtual collaboratives. For every encounter that included behavioral activation, the care manager completed an online checklist to indicate which of the 10 skills were delivered. The trained care managers reported delivering behavioral activation for a total of 4632 sessions with 455 patients. The study evaluated the implementation outcomes of patient reach and care manager skill adoption. Findings showed care managers engaged 88% of patients in behavioral activation and 57% of patients received the minimum course (at least 4 sessions) On average, patients received 5.9 skills per session during treatment. Care managers significantly increased the range of skills the reported using over time. Overall, the training program was feasible for community-based providers and minimized the training time burden to a one-time experience . The technology-based behavioral activation training facilitated care managers to deliver therapy to hundreds of patients in underserved rural settings.

05/28/2021

Acceptability and usability of mobile apps for smoking cessation among young adults with psychotic disorders and other serious mental illness

Gowarty M, Aschbrenner K, Brunette M. (2021). Acceptability and usability of mobile apps for smoking cessation among young adults with psychotic disorders and other serious mental illness. Frontiers in Psychiatry. 12: 592. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.656538

Researchers compared the usability and acceptability of two smoking cessation apps (QuitGuide and quitSTART) between young adult smokers (ages 18-35 years) with psychotic disorders (PD) (n = 7) and serious mental illness post-traumatic stress disorder (SMI-PTSD) (n = 10). Read More