CAPS / structured interview
Gold-standard symptom assessment.
Methods include structured interviews, psychophysiology, imaging, genetics and randomised trials of trauma-focused therapies.
Educational neuroscience context only — not medical advice, diagnosis or a substitute for emergency or clinical care. If you are in crisis, seek local emergency services or a licensed clinician.
Tools
PCL and screening scales
Progress tracking — not standalone diagnosis.
Fear conditioning / extinction
Mechanistic probes of threat learning.
fMRI / MEG
Map amygdala–PFC–hippocampus dynamics.
Psychophysiology (startle, SCR)
Quantify hyperarousal objectively.
Treatment RCTs / meta-analyses
Evidence base for trauma-focused care.
Protocols
Prolonged exposure protocols
Therapist-guided, graded, monitored.
Cognitive processing therapy trials
Target stuck points in trauma meaning.
Waitlist / active-control designs
Separate nonspecific factors from mechanisms.
Longitudinal resilience cohorts
Track who recovers without full PTSD.
Limits
Heterogeneous trauma types
Combat ≠ assault ≠ disaster biologically or socially.
Imaging non-specificity
Overlaps with anxiety and depression circuitry.
Underreporting & stigma
Many never seek care despite impairment.
Online quizzes are not diagnoses; DIY exposure is not treatment.
Sources & research
- Post-traumatic stress disorderPrimer on PTSD mechanisms and care.DOI
- Biological studies of post-traumatic stress disorderBiological synthesis of PTSD findings.DOI
- Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderClinical review of PTSD.DOI
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