News

Research Symposium Recognizes 2022 Award Recipients

September 16, 2022

The STRONG STAR Consortium was honored on Sept. 12 as one of the Team Award recipients at the Military Health System Research Symposium. The award, which recognizes outstanding research accomplishment over the past year, went to STRONG STAR for several groundbreaking achievements in 2021-2022, including success with the first treatment specifically for posttraumatic headache as well as with innovative PTSD therapies and delivery methods to make them more appealing and accessible to service members and veterans. Other important findings during the year showed (1) promise for exercise as a means to help with PTSD symptoms and (2) a strong link between fibromyalgia and PTSD among service members. Learn about all of the Individual and Team Award winners in this article by the Military Health System.

Insomnia Alone Linked to Worsened Symptoms and Impairments Than OSA Alone in Military Personnel

September 9, 2022

This news article by Neurology Live shares findings by Dr. Vincent Mysliwiec and fellow STRONG STAR investigators on sleep problems and their impact among military service members.

Register now for San Antonio Combat PTSD Conference, back in person for 2022

September 2, 2022

Sponsored by the STRONG STAR Consortium and The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, the San Antonio Combat PTSD Conference returns to an in-person format for 2022. The event will be held Oct. 26-27 in downtown San Antonio at the Briscoe Western Art Museum. Learn more about this year’s exciting line-up of speakers and connect with the conference registration page through this UT Health San Antonio news release.

Innovative psychotherapy eases headache symptoms for Veterans with brain injuries

August 25, 2022

This newsletter article by the VA’s Office of Research and Development describes the important work and findings of Dr. Don McGeary and his research team with the Consortium to Alleviate PTSD in the successful development and testing Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Post-traumatic Headache. In a large randomized clinical trial with military veterans, the therapy was highly successful in reducing disability and improving quality of life for those living with chronic headaches after a brain injury; it also was as helpful as a leading treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder in reducing symptoms of PTSD.

Diagnoses of moral injury are a growing part of Afghanistan legacy for US personnel

August 13, 2022

STRONG STAR investigator Brett Litz and director Alan Peterson share insights on what our war fighters may be experiencing near the anniversary of the evacuation from Afghanistan.

Interview with Dr. Don McGeary: Study shows success with cognitive behavioral therapy for post-traumatic headache in veterans

July 18, 2022

Listen here to a radio segment explaining groundbreaking study findings by the Consortium to Alleviate PTSD recently published in JAMA Neurology and an interview with lead investigator Dr. Don McGeary of The University of Texas Health Science Center. Cognitive behavioral therapy for post-traumatic headache, or headache that follows a brain injury, showed great success in reducing headache-related disability among military veterans, and it also was as effective for co-occurring symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a leading PTSD therapy.

Cognitive Behavioral, Processing Therapies Show Favorable Results in Comorbid Posttraumatic Headache, PTSD Symptoms

July 15, 2022

NeurologyLive published this story with findings from a study led by Donald McGeary, PhD, for the Consortium to Alleviate PTSD. The study found that cognitive behavioral therapy for post-traumatic headache, or headache that follows a brain injury, showed great success in reducing headache-related disability among military veterans, and also was as effective for co-occurring symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a leading PTSD therapy.

CBT may improve comorbid posttraumatic headache, PTSD

July 5, 2022

This news story by MDedge reports on findings by Consortium to Alleviate PTSD investigators on the efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy for post-traumatic headache in reducing headache-related disability and PTSD symptoms in military veterans with traumatic brain injury.

New therapy significantly reduces headache disability, post-traumatic stress after brain injury, study finds

June 27, 2022

The first therapy to be developed specifically for post-traumatic headache significantly reduced related disability in veterans following a traumatic brain injury (TBI). It also reduced co-occurring symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) comparably to a gold-standard PTSD treatment.

Moreover, the innovative treatment, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Headache (CBTH), was appealing to patients, showing low drop-out rates, and is easy for therapists to learn and deliver, increasing its potential to be broadly disseminated and to improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of service members and veterans.

Those findings were reported today in JAMA Neurology byDon McGeary, PhD, of The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, and his fellow investigators with the Consortium to Alleviate PTSD. 

Experts answer questions about sleep disorders and the health-related issues

May 10, 2022

STRONG STAR investigator and University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio professor Vincent Mysliewic, MD, was part of an expert panel on Texas Public Radio’s “The Source” discussing sleep disorders and related health issues.