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Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy for Combat-Related PTSD

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Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Related Diseases in Combat Veterans

Abstract

War is perhaps one of the most challenging situations that a human being can experience. The physical, emotional, cognitive, and psychological demands of a combat environment place enormous stress on even the best-prepared military personnel. Numerous reports indicate that the incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in returning Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) military personnel is significant. This has served to motivate research on how to better develop and disseminate evidence-based treatments for PTSD that leverage the unique features available with virtual reality (VR) technology. VR-delivered exposure therapy for PTSD is currently being used to treat combat- and terrorist attack-related PTSD with initial reports of positive outcomes. This chapter presents a brief overview and rationale for the use of VR exposure for combat-related PTSD and describes the Virtual Iraq/Afghanistan exposure therapy system. This includes a short review of the previous literature, a description of the system components and the treatment protocol, and a case presentation. VR offers an alternative format for delivering exposure-based therapies for PTSD that may appeal to certain service members and veterans who grew up “digital” and who might be inclined to seek treatment in this fashion.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA

    Judith Cukor PhD & JoAnn Difede PhD

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Maryrose Gerardi PhD & Barbara O. Rothbaum PhD

  3. Southern California Institute for Research and Education, Long Beach VA Medical Center, Long Beach, CA, USA

    Stephanie Alley MA

  4. Department of Research, Long Beach VA Medical Center, Long Beach, CA, USA

    Christopher Reist MD

  5. Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA

    Christopher Reist MD

  6. Division of Military Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD, USA

    Michael Roy MD

  7. Medical Virtual Reality, Institute for Creative Technologies, Department of Psychiatry and School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, Playa Vista, CA, USA

    Albert Rizzo PhD

Authors
  1. Judith Cukor PhD
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  2. Maryrose Gerardi PhD
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  3. Stephanie Alley MA
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  4. Christopher Reist MD
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  5. Michael Roy MD
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  6. Barbara O. Rothbaum PhD
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  7. JoAnn Difede PhD
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  8. Albert Rizzo PhD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Albert Rizzo PhD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, USA

    Elspeth Cameron Ritchie

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Cukor, J. et al. (2015). Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy for Combat-Related PTSD. In: Ritchie, E. (eds) Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Related Diseases in Combat Veterans. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22985-0_7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22985-0_7

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-22984-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-22985-0

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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