1. VA Watchdog dot Org - VA NEWS FLASH - 08-25-2007 #7 -- STUDY PROBES ROOTS OF FEARFUL MEMORIES -- New research is helping scientists understand why frightening, traumatic memories, which can help cause PTSD, go so deep and linger so long in the human brain.nf082507-7.htm
... the human brain. For more on norepinephrine , use the VA Watchdog search engine ...ses search.php?q=Norepinephrine&op=and For more on ... rats shows that a powerful neurochemical called norepinephrine is released to help the brain deal ... for treatment, they added. "Norepinephrine is released in a part of the ... Belmont, Mass. In addition, norepinephrine -- also called noradrenalin -- .... "There is some evidence that norepinephrine is involved in the transition from short ...s brain that were then infused with norepinephrine. They observed how norepinephrine increased fear-learning through brain cell... http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/nf07/nfAUG07/nf082507-7.htm
... to medication regimens and increased levels of norepinephrine, a stress hormone. "Patients ... Another study examined 24-hour urinary norepinephrine levels in 598 coronary disease patients, ... of the depressed participants had a urinary norepinephrine value above the normal range, compared ..., the higher the participant's norepinephrine levels. This paper appears in the ... the non-adherence." The norepinephrine study, on the other hand, .... While there was no association between norepinephrine levels and baseline severity of heart disease ...t necessarily mean that patients with elevated norepinephrine won't have worse outcomes over ... whether medication non-adherence or elevated norepinephrine actually predict increased risk of heart disease... http://www.vawatchdog.org/old newsflashes MAR 06/newsflash03-23-2006-1.htm
3. VA Watchdog dot Org - VA NEWS FLASH - 12-02-06 #2nf120206-2.htm
..., blocking the release of a neurotransmitter called norepinephrine, Neylan explained. Norepinephrine is the neural form of the stress hormone ... known that PTSD patients have increased levels of norepinephrine activity in their brains. "So, ... drug like guanfacine that blocks the effects of norepinephrine, and you'd hope to see ... possible answer. "[Too much] norepinephrine can be a bad thing," he .... So, lowering the whole pool of norepinephrine did not seem to be an effective strategy ... Neylan said a newer drug that works on norepinephrine receptors, but in a different way,... http://www.vawatchdog.org/nfDEC06/nf120206-2.htm
... with PTSD.1 About Nepicastat (SYN-117) Nepicastat inhibits dopamine ΓΆ-hydroxylase (DBH), the enzyme responsible for the conversion of dopamine into norepinephrine. Nepicastat has been shown to increase brain and blood concentrations of dopamine and decrease those of norepinephrine in animals. Nepicastat is administered orally and has been well tolerated in studies including over 250 people in other therapeutic indications, some receiving treatment for several months.... http://www.vawatchdog.org/08/nf08/nfnov08/nf110508-2.htm
5. VA Watchdog dot Org - VA NEWS FLASH - 04-12-2007 #3 -- VA RESEARCH FINDS DRUG HELPS PTSD NIGHTMARES -- Veterans taking a nightly dose of prazosin reported significantly improved sleep quality, reduced trauma nightmares, a better overall sense of well being and an improved ability to function.nf041207-3.htm
... REM sleep, whereas normal dreams both pleasant and unpleasant occur during normal REM sleep. Prazosin works by blocking the brain s response to the adrenaline-like neurotransmitter norepinephrine. Blocking norepinephrine normalizes and increases REM sleep. In this study, veterans taking prazosin reported that they resumed normal dreaming. One dose of prazosin works for 6 to 8 hours... http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/nf07/nfAPR07/nf041207-3.htm
6. VA Watchdog dot Org - VA NEWS FLASH - 04-18-2007 #7 -- PTSD NEEDS TO BE RECOGNIZED IN PRIMARY CARE -- While PTSD is widely recognized today, it often remains undiagnosed and undertreated.nf041807-7.htm
... factors. Pharmacotherapy The main goals of pharmacotherapy are to reduce the core symptoms, improve resilience and quality of life, prevent relapse, and treat comorbid disorders. Physicians use a range of drugs, many of them psychiatric, to treat PTSD. Placebo-controlled studies in veterans and civilians alike indicate that Ssris and selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors are the most effective and should be the first line of pharmacotherapy, according to Jonathan Davidson, MD, professor of psychiatry at Duke University Medical Center, who addressed the IOM committee. Positive results defined as a certain percentage reduction in symptoms and improved quality of life have occurred in up to 55%... http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/nf07/nfAPR07/nf041807-7.htm
... war soldiers twice that of other wars? One reason could be that 80 percent of troops with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are given drugs that didn't exist during other wars. Antidepressants like Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil and Celexa (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors or Ssris) and Cymbalta and Effexor (Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors or Srnis) that are so closely associated with suicide they carry suicide warnings. 660 people have killed themselves on Ssris and Snris since1988 according to published newspaper reports including at least 17 Iraq war veterans. Many more have attempted suicide and committed felonies, self-harm, police stand-offs, murders... http://www.vawatchdog.org/09/nf09/nfapr09/nf041309-5.htm
