Written Exposure Therapy (WET) is a five-session mental health therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Research shows that it works as well as longer treatments for PTSD among people over 18, even though it requires fewer sessions than other PTSD therapies. However, WET has not been adapted and formally tested in individual therapy with people aged 12 to 18. Our study aims to see how WET can be adapted to meet the needs of people aged 12 to 18 who have experienced trauma and currently have PTSD symptoms. To adapt WET for this age group, first we will talk with PTSD experts and people aged 12 to 18 to learn what changes might make WET more suitable for young people. We'll also deliver WET to five people aged 12 to 18 following the manual as it is written for people over age 18 to see what needs adjusting.

In the next part of the study, we will recruit 48 adolescents aged 12 to 18 in a pediatric primary clinic who have symptoms of PTSD and randomize them to either receive the adapted version of WET or to receive gold-standard PTSD treatment: Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy. If assigned to receive adapted WET, participants will take part in five to seven weekly therapy sessions and five study visits (before therapy, and 6-week, 10-week, 20-weeks, and 30 weeks after starting the therapy). If assigned to receive TF-CBT, participants will take part in 12 to 16 weekly therapy sessions and five study visits (before therapy, and 6-week, 10-week, 20-weeks, and 30-weeks after starting the therapy). The purpose of the study visits for a 30-week time period is to better understand who they are as a person and their current mental health symptoms and diagnoses. All therapy and study visits can be completed remotely or in person, per your preference. Individuals who are 18 can participate without caregiver permission; individuals aged 12 to 17 can only participate with caregiver permission. Our goal is to find the best way to provide effective PTSD treatment for young people that can be delivered in real-world pediatric primary care settings, so that ultimately more people can get the help they need after traumatic experiences.

This study investigates the factors contributing to cognitive load among emergency medicine physicians at the Medical University of South Carolina's Main Emergency Department during clinical shifts and identifies those with the greatest impact.

Cognitive load will be measured before and after shifts using a validated survey tool, while corresponding heart rate metrics will be recorded and voluntarily shared throughout and immediately following each shift via personal smartwatches. These physiological and survey data will then be analyzed in the context of clinical events occurring during the shift to assess how specific experiences influence overall cognitive load.

The events under consideration were selected based on findings from a prior study in which MUSC emergency medicine physicians ranked the perceived contributors to their cognitive load. The occurrence of these predetermined events will be documented through direct observation of physicians during shifts and, if applicable, obtained via shift-level operational reports.

This study aims to explore the prevalence of mental health symptoms, including trauma exposure and posttraumatic stress symptoms in a postpartum population. The study also aims to collect information related to medical and mental health treatment seeking before, during, and after pregnancy as well as feedback on adaptations of future mental health interventions delivered during the postpartum period. Participation in this study includes a 35 minute online survey with questionnaires related to the study aims. Depending on survey responses, participants may be invited to complete an interview with study personnel to provide more specific insight on mental health treatments for perinatal individuals.

Co-occurring post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD) disproportionately affects Veterans and has significant negative impacts on the safety, wellbeing, and quality of life of Veterans, their romantic partners, and their families. However, treatments that address co-occurring PTSD-AUD and restore Veterans' psychosocial functioning are lacking. The overall goal of this project is to improve treatment approaches aimed at reducing symptoms of co-occurring PTSD-AUD and improving functioning among Veterans and their partners. We plan to do this by learning from Veterans, family members, and treatment providers in order to inform an adaptation of a brief dyadic AUD intervention to be delivered alongside integrated PTSD-AUD treatment for Veteran couples and then conducting a pilot trial of an adapted Brief Family Involved Treatment (B-FIT) intervention with Veterans with PTSD-AUD and their romantic partners.

Written Exposure Therapy (WET) is a five-session mental health therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Research shows that it works as well as longer treatments for PTSD among people over 18, even though it requires fewer sessions than other PTSD therapies. However, WET has not been adapted and tested via telehealth with people aged 12 to 18. Our study aims to see how WET can be adapted to meet the needs of people aged 12 to 18 who have experienced trauma and currently have PTSD symptoms. To adapt WET for this age group, first we will talk with PTSD experts and people aged 12 to 18 to learn what changes might make WET more suitable for young people. We'll also deliver WET via telehealth to five people aged 12 to 18 following the manual as it is written for people over age 18 to see what needs adjusting. In the next part of the study, we will offer the adapted version of WET via telehealth to 20 people aged 12 to 18 in our MUSC integrated pediatric primary care clinic. People aged 12 to 18 will take part in five to seven weekly online therapy sessions and three virtual study visits (before therapy, after therapy, and one month later) to better understand who they are as a person and their current mental health symptoms and diagnoses. Individuals who are 18 can participate without caregiver permission; individuals aged 12 to 17 can only participate with caregiver permission. Our goal is to find the best way to provide effective PTSD treatment for young people that can be delivered in real-world pediatric primary care settings, so that ultimately more people can get the help they need after traumatic experiences.

This study is an 8-week cannabis reduction trial among adults (ages 18+; N=176) with CUD who are interested in reduction to assess effects of cannabis reduction on: 1) cannabis-related problems and consequences, 2) objective measures of sleep and cognitive performance, and 3) patient-reported improvements, including quality of life and CUD severity. All participants will receive CUD treatment and cannabis use will be comprehensively assessed via detailed self-report and urinary cannabinoids.All participants will receive cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT4CBT- a computerized cognitive behavioral therapy) enhanced with motivational interviewing, brief counseling, and financial incentives provided on a sliding scale for demonstrating reduction in urinary cannabinoids.

As growing research suggests noninvasive brain stimulation techniques have the potential to adjunct current treatments or treat Seizure-Type Functional Neurologic Disorder (FND-seiz), also known as Psychogenic Non-Epileptic Seizures (PNES), we aim to evaluate whether a form of accelerated intermittent theta burst transcranial magnetic stimulation (a-iTBS-rTMS), is a practical and well-tolerated treatment for people with this disorder. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation or TMS uses magnetic pulses to stimulate a part of the brain involved in mood and thinking, the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which has established benefits in disorders known to coincide in patients with FND-seiz, such as depression.

As an open-label, early feasibility study, enrolled participants will receive 6 to 10 treatment sessions each day over 3 to 5 days, with the goal of completing 30 total sessions. This approach was selected because similar protocols have already been shown to be safe and effective in other conditions, and the shortened treatment schedule in comparison to other protocols may make participation easier for people living with FND-seiz. The main goal of the study is to see how many participants can safely and comfortably complete at least 20 of the 30 TMS sessions.

The researchers will also evaluate changes in seizure frequency, quality of life, mood, post-traumatic stress symptoms, physical health, social functioning, and overall satisfaction with treatment. These outcomes will be measured before treatment and again four weeks afterward. The researchers also aim to explore whether people with overlapping conditions, such as depression or PTSD, respond differently to the treatment. Finally, given the overlap between epilepsy and FND-seiz, not all TMS providers are comfortable treating patients with FND-seiz when TMS is indicated for other conditions, thus the researchers aim to outline a protocol to ensure safety and increase TMS access for FND-seiz patients.

Patients with drug-resistant epilepsy often experience problems with mood, thinking, or behavior that cannot be explained by seizure activity alone. This study will examine how cognitive and mood-related brain regions communicate in patients undergoing routine intracranial electroencephalogram (iEEG) seizure assessment in the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). While the clinical electrodes are in place, we will apply brief single magnetic pulses (single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation, or spTMS) to the scalp in specific brain regions and record the brain's electrical response through the existing electrodes; no additional surgery is required. We will compare the responses to stimulation of an emotionally and cognitively relevant region (left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex) with a contrast site (primary motor cortex). We will also investigate whether momentary brain rhythms and seizure-related electrical activity affect responses propagation through the brain. The findings may help identify measurable brain signaling patterns ("biomarkers") to understand how cognitive-emotional brain networks work in people with epilepsy and inform future personalized non-invasive brain stimulation methods for treating neurological and psychiatric disorders.

Apathy is a common set of symptoms seen in many people following a stroke. Apathy occurs when a person has lost motivation, becomes withdrawn, and stops doing things that used to be important to them. Apathy has a large negative impact on a person's quality of life, and can also have a large impact the people who take care of individuals with apathy. There are currently no FDA-approved treatments to help with apathy, and other services like therapy may be difficult to access for people who have had a stroke. To address this problem, we are conducting a study to find out if a form of treatment called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can be safe and helpful for people struggling with apathy after a stroke. Our study will apply a new form of rTMS which can be delivered quickly to a part of the brain called the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Our study will help establish whether this treatment is safe, comfortable, and effective for people with apathy after a stroke, and will help researchers develop new forms of treatment.

This is a research study to help see if a new interview for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), called the Revised Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5, or the CAPS-5-R for short, is accurate and reliable for veterans. By doing this study, we hope to learn if the CAPS-5-R can be used in VA to diagnose PTSD. Participation will all be done remotely. Joining this study will involve (1) completing some questionnaire measures and (2) completing an interview remotely by videoconference over 2 days at most.

Participants must be Veterans, aged 18 or older in the Ralph H. Johnson VA Health Care System who have experienced trauma or at least one PTSD symptom.