Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized by symptoms of re-experiencing, avoidance, negative alterations in cognition and mood, and marked alterations in arousal and reactivity following exposure to a traumatic event. PTSD can be assessed by structured interviews and screening measures in psychiatric and nonpsychiatric settings. Evidence-based psychotherapies are the first-line treatment of PTSD, with cognitive behavioral therapies, such as prolonged exposure, cognitive processing therapy, and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing having the largest body and highest quality of evidence. Serotonin reuptake inhibitors are the first-line pharmacologic treatments for PTSD and are often used in conjunction with other therapeutic interventions.