This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.

Telemedicine-based psychotherapy effectively treated veterans with PTSD

A telemedicine-based collaborative psychotherapy model successfully provided care to military veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder who lived in rural areas, according to recent study data.

The researchers evaluated 265 veterans treated at 11 community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) from November 2009 to September 2011. The cohort consisted primarily of rural, unemployed, middle-aged men with severe PTSD symptoms and other mental health comorbidities.

Patients were randomly assigned to one of two groups: usual care (UC; n=132) or Telemedicine Outreach for PTSD intervention (TOP; n=133). In the TOP arm, an off-site PTSD care team utilized telemedicine tools (telephone calls, interactive videos, and shared electronic health records) to augment the PTSD treatment provided at CBOCs. Care managers and pharmacists provided consultations by telephone, and psychotherapy and psychiatric appointments were provided through interactive video to the CBOC. Practitioner input and treatment suggestions were shared with CBOC providers through electronic health records.

The researchers found that during the 12-month follow up, 54.9% of the TOP group received cognitive processing therapy vs. 12.1% of the UC patients. Participation in eight or more cognitive processing therapy sessions was predictive of improvements on posttraumatic diagnostic scale scores (P=.02).

Veterans in the TOP group also showed greater score decreases on a PTSD scale, which gauged PTSD severity at 6 (P=.002) and 12 months (P=.04) compared with UC patients. The number of PTSD medication prescriptions, and subsequent medication regimen compliance, did not differ significantly between groups.

The researchers said these findings suggest that telemedicine may be a viable approach to treating military veterans suffering from PTSD.

“Despite its limitations, this trial introduces a promising model for managing PTSD in a treatment-resistant population,” the researchers wrote. “Findings suggest that telemedicine-based collaborative care can successfully engage this population in evidence-based psychotherapy for PTSD, thereby improving clinical outcomes.”

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.