India, March 25 -- New research reveals that witnessing trauma triggers distinct brain changes, separate from those caused by experiencing trauma firsthand. The study found that indirect trauma alters protein degradation patterns in key brain regions linked to fear memory.
Conducted by Virginia Tech and published in PLOS ONE, this study is the first to highlight molecular differences between PTSD acquired through direct experience and PTSD developed as a bystander. These findings could lead to new approaches in treating both conditions.
"Currently, patients with directly acquired PTSD and bystander PTSD are treated the same way - with a combination of therapy and medication," said Timothy Jarome, the project's principal investigator and a...