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Event‐related potentials to auditory stimuli in female Vietnam nurse veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder
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2002
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Traumatic Brain InjuryNeuropsychologyPsychoacousticsNeurophysiological BiomarkersNeuropsychiatryPsychologyP50 SuppressionPsychophysiologyPosttraumatic Stress DisorderAuditory ScienceStress BiomarkersHealth SciencesExperimental PsychopathologyAuditory ProcessingPtsd DiagnosisPsychiatric DiseasePsychiatryCurrent PtsdAuditory ResearchHearing SciencesNursingClinical DisordersAuditory PhysiologyHearing PerceptionMood DisordersBiological PsychiatryMedicineAffect PerceptionPsychopathologyPost-traumatic Stress Disorder
Individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been found to show several event‐related brain potential (ERP) abnormalities including reduced target P3b amplitude, P50 suppression, and P2 amplitude/intensity slope. Female Vietnam nurse veterans with ( n = 29) and without ( n = 38) current PTSD completed P50 paired‐click, three‐tone “oddball” and four‐tone stimulus‐intensity modulation procedures. Opposite to previous findings, the current PTSD group had larger target P3b amplitudes and increased P2 amplitude/intensity slopes. Reduced P50 suppression was associated with increased severity of general psychopathology, but not with PTSD diagnosis. Findings suggest that target P3b amplitude and P2 amplitude/intensity slope abnormalities reflect different pathophysiological processes. Future research is needed to determine whether the opposite ERP abnormalities observed in this PTSD sample reflect gender‐, trauma‐, or sample‐specific findings.