Executive Dysfunction and Suicide in Psychiatric Outpatients and Inpatients

• Objective: To assess decision making in the context of an interaction between suicide and TBI. Findings will also allow for exploratory analyses aimed at identifying associations between performance on measures of executive functioning and psychological distress. The long-term objective is to increase understanding regarding executive dysfunction, as a multidimensional construct, with the ultimate goal of conceptualizing assessment tools and interventions aimed at decreasing suicidality in the at-risk population of veterans with a history of TBI.
• Sponsor: VA
• Contact: Lisa Brenner, PhD, lisa.brenner@va.gov
• Status: currently enrolling

Pain, Psychiatric Disorder, and Disability among Veterans with Polytrauma

• Objective: Information to be obtained from this proposed study will prove critical for planning future VA healthcare strategies and developing effective and efficient treatments targeting pain and emotional adjustment difficulties among individuals with polytrauma and returning OEF/OIF personnel. This study will be the first to provide systematic data regarding pain and emotional problem prevalence, course, associated impairments, risk factors, and barriers to care and community reintegration among returning OEF and OIF servicemembers with and without polytrauma.
• Sponsor: VA
• Contact: Candon Norton, PsyD, candon.norton1@va.gov
• Status: currently enrolling

Impact of Vocational Rehabilitation on Mentally Ill Veterans

• Objective: To compare standard vocational rehabilitation with supported employment for veterans with PTSD. With supported employment, a veteran is assisted by a vocational rehabilitation employment specialist, who is integrated into a clinical treatment team. The specialist helps place veterans in long-term, competitive jobs.
• Sponsor: VA
• Contact: Lori Davis, MD, Tuscaloosa VAMC
• Status: Active, no longer recruiting

Extinction of Fear Memories with Glucocorticoids

• Objective: To examine the effects of glucocorticoid administration following traumatic memory reactivation on psychiatric symptoms in veterans with combat-related PTSD.
• Sponsor: VA
• Contact: Julia Smith, PsyD, Julia.Smith2@va.gov
• Status: currently enrolling

Brain Imaging of Childhood Onset Psychiatric Disorders

• Objective: A long-term study conducted by NIH Clinical Center since 1989. Researchers use MRIs to assess brain anatomy and function in normal volunteers and patients with a variety of childhood onset psychiatric disorders including attention deficit disorder, autism, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, childhood-onset schizophrenia, dyslexia, multidimensional impairment syndrome, obsessive compulsive disorder, pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infection stuttering, Sydenham’s chorea, and Tourette’s syndrome. Results of the MRIs showing the anatomy of the brain and brain function will be compared across age, sex (gender), and diagnostic groups. Correlations between brain and behavioral measures will be examined for normal and clinical populations.
• Sponsor: NIMH
• Contact: Patient Recruitment and Public Liaison Office, prpl@mail.cc.nih.gov
• Status: ongoing, currently recruiting

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