Evaluation of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder using Brain View Imaging

Abstract

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be severe enough to interfere with patients' daily life and can be associated with cooccurring psychiatric disorders such as depression, anxiety, and substance abuse. PTSD diagnosis is still difficult because many patients may not be willing to disclose their traumatic event, or the symptoms get confused with depression and/or substance abuse. Current methods for diagnosis rely heavily on psychiatrist-patient subjective clinical examinations using standardized questionnaire system. More recently, objective evaluation using electroencephalography (EEG) has been suggested as a better method with higher consistency and accuracy. EEG-based findings can potentially better differentiate PTSD from its overlap with other mental disorders. In this review, we will summarize the evolution of PTSD diagnosis, and how EEG and Brain View can potentially improve the diagnostic field.