title: Perceptual processing advantages for trauma-related visual cues in post-traumatic stress disorder.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Intrusive re-experiencing in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) comprises distressing sensory impressions from the trauma that seem to occur 'out of the blue'. A key question is how intrusions are triggered. One possibility is that PTSD is characterized by a processing advantage for stimuli that resemble those that accompanied the trauma, which would lead to increased detection of such cues in the environment.
  
  
  METHODS
  We used a blurred picture identification task in a cross-sectional (n=99) and a prospective study (n=221) of trauma survivors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants with acute stress disorder (ASD) or PTSD, but not trauma survivors without these disorders, identified trauma-related pictures, but not general threat pictures, better than neutral pictures. There were no group differences in the rate of trauma-related answers to other picture categories. The relative processing advantage for trauma-related pictures correlated with re-experiencing and dissociation, and predicted PTSD at follow-up.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A perceptual processing bias for trauma-related stimuli may contribute to the involuntary triggering of intrusive trauma memories in PTSD.
authors: Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK.
authors: B
authors: B
authors: Kleim
authors: T
authors: T
authors: Ehring
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Ehlers
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000523:psychology; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001288:Attention; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003463:Cues; D004213:Dissociative Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D008875:Middle Aged; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology*; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D014754:Violence / Q000523:psychology; D014796:Visual Perception