I don’t know if they mean prevent it totally or prevent a more severe case of PTSD, but it makes perfect sense that the faster horrific pain is addressed and the less suffering that happens, the better the injured solider will fare in the long run.
Health News
By Allie Montgomery
Published: Thursday, 14 January 2010EXCERPT
Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD) affects both active duty soldiers and war veterans, but now there may be a way to help prevent it. Immediately administering a treatment of morphine to troops wounded in the field can cut the chance in half that they will develop PTSD, according to a new study that is suggesting a new strategy for preventing the psychological fallout of war.
Researchers from the U.S. Naval Health Research Center led the study of approximately 700 troops that were injured in Iraq between the years of 2004 and 2006. Troy Lisa Holbrook, who is an epidemiologist at the Naval Center and the leader of this study, said, “It was surprising how strong the effect of the morphine was.” The findings of this study were published in Thursday’s New England Journal of Medicine.
Of course, whether or not the Pentagon will adopt this practice on the battlefield remains to be seen. Dr. Jack Smith, who is the acting deputy assistant secretary of defense for clinical and program policy, stated that the “very interesting findings” are “likely to stimulate further research.”
Approximately 53,000 troops that have returned from Afghanistan and Iraq have been treated for PTSD, a disorder in which someone who has endured a traumatic event keeps re-experiencing both the event and the fear and emotions it caused. These patients often have trouble with relationships, substance abuse, work and physical ailments.
The researchers have been testing different ways to treat it, and this new study looked at whether fast and strong pain relief can help to prevent it. However, it was still unclear as to whether it was the fast pain treatment or something more specific to the morphine that made the difference. READ MORE
