Local Clinic Seeks Military Veterans to Participate in PTSD Study

The Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at Metrocare is looking for military veterans with combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to participate in a study on a novel treatment protocol for PTSD. This comes after a University of Texas at Dallas (UT Dallas) neuroscience research team was granted a nearly $7.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense for a multisite study.

The study will include repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), in which a magnetic coil modulates targeted brain areas. In this trial for treating PTSD, this form of neurostimulation is being used in conjunction with cognitive processing therapy (CPT), a version of cognitive behavioral therapy developed specifically for PTSD. This standardized therapy, uniformly administered from a set of rigorous guidelines, provides consistency across patients’ treatments, which is crucial for such a study.

The trial study will be conducted at three sites: the Cohen Clinic at Metrocare, UT Dallas and the James A. Haley VA Center in Tampa, Florida. UT Southwestern Medical Center psychiatry professors Dr. John W. Burruss, CEO of Metrocare, and Dr. Amy Williams, Clinic Director at the Cohen Clinic at Metrocare, will oversee the Metrocare cohort.

The Cohen Clinic at Metrocare, which is located in Addison and serves the North Texas region, provides quality, accessible, and comprehensive mental health care to post-9/11 veterans, their families, and family members of active duty service members. Services are available to any person who has served in the U.S. Armed Forces, including the National Guard and Reserves, regardless of role or discharge status.

“We are excited to build upon our current mission of providing evidence-based treatments to post-9/11 veterans,” said Dr. Williams. “Through participation in cutting-edge research, the Cohen Clinic at Metrocare is helping lead the way towards better therapies for combat-related PTSD.”

A UT Dallas neuroscience research team led by Dr. John Hart Jr. will lead the study.

“We proposed a multicenter project because we want to show that this method would work for a variety of veteran populations at different therapeutic sites,” Hart said. “We have a Veterans Affairs hospital group; we have an uninsured, underserved group; and we have a community-dwelling group. We hope our results will provide more evidence that this treatment will be effective for the civilian and military population.”

“As in our prior study, we’ll be doing imaging and EEG to look at markers of change and to learn more about PTSD, the mechanisms behind it, and what happens in the brain when symptoms improve,” he added.

Participants will be evaluated on PTSD symptoms and brain-imaging assessments at six- and 12-months post-treatment. Within each population group, veterans will receive one of three treatment regimens. There will be participants receiving rTMS followed by CPT, while others will receive only CPT. The new, third component will be a subset receiving only rTMS.

To participate in this study, contact the Cohen Clinic at Metrocare by emailing MFC@metrocareservices.org or call (469) 680-3500.

About the Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at Metrocare

The Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at Metrocare is part of Cohen Veterans Network (CVN), a nationwide network of mental health care clinics for post-9/11 veterans and their families. CVN is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit philanthropic network focused on improving mental health outcomes, with a goal to build a network of outpatient mental health clinics for veterans and their families in high-need communities, in which trained clinicians deliver holistic evidence-based care to treat mental health conditions. Learn more about the Cohen Veterans Network.

About Metrocare Services

Metrocare is the largest provider of mental health services in North Texas, serving more than 60,000 adults and children annually. For over 50 years, Metrocare has provided a broad array of services to people with mental health challenges and developmental disabilities. In addition to behavioral health care, Metrocare provides primary care centers for adults and children, services for veterans and their families, accessible pharmacies, housing and supportive social services. Alongside the clinical care, researchers and teachers from Metrocare’s Altshuler Center for Education & Research are advancing mental health beyond Dallas County while providing critical workforce to the state. For more information, visit metrocareservices.org or call 214-743-1200. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.