title: Memory of the traumatic event as a risk factor for the development of PTSD: lessons from the study of traumatic brain injury.
abstract: Traumatic memories, and the mechanisms by which they operate, continue to occupy a central role in the scientific investigation of risk factors for the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, empirically based studies are constrained by practical and ethical considerations and are limited to naturalistic models. Consequently, the paradigms most appropriate for the exploration of the relationship between traumatic memories and PTSD have been identified in conditions involving traumatic events where memories may be compromised. Indeed, traumatic brain injury, a condition that is commonly associated with memory impairment, has often been utilized as a naturally occurring model for the study of traumatic memory and its contribution to the development of PTSD. This article presents a critical review of these research efforts and discusses their theoretical and clinical implications.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Social Welfare and Health Studies, School of Social Work, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel. gsharon@research.haifa.ac.il
authors.forename: Sharon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gil
authors.forename: Yael
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Caspi
authors.forename: Irit
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ben-Ari
authors.forename: Ehud
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Klein
mesh_terms: D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008568:Memory; D012307:Risk Factors; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*