Authors: Michèle Wessa Anke Karl Herta Flor
Publish Date: 2005/07/21
Volume: 167, Issue: 1, Pages: 56-65
Abstract
This study examined verbalsubjective peripheral and central physiological responses of motor vehicle accident MVA survivors with subclinical posttraumatic stress disorder PTSD without PTSD symptoms as well as healthy controls Seven persons of each group were exposed to positive neutral accidentrelated and negative nonaccidentrelated slides The verbalsubjective ratings of the slides did not differ between the groups In contrast to the verbal ratings of the traumarelated materials the behavioral and physiological responses showed a remarkable dissociation from these reports The startle responses were enhanced to accidentrelated slides only in the PTSD group and MVA survivors with PTSD had a significantly lower response to the neutral slides than MVA survivors without PTSD P200 was lower to positive neutral and negative slides in the PTSD group compared to both other groups The late positive complex showed no grouprelated effects The data suggest that traumatized persons with PTSD show exaggerated emotional responses to traumarelated stimuli and reduced cognitive responses to several types of stimuli that may interfere with the extinction of the emotional trauma memory
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