Testing the role of aerobic exercise in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in U.S. active duty military personnel: a pilot study

The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if the efficacy of imaginal exposure for symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) could be improved by adding aerobic exercise. We hypothesized that aerobic exercise would enhance the efficacy of exposure therapy. Active duty service members w...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Cognitive behaviour therapy Vol. 51; no. 4; pp. 309 - 325
Main Authors:	Young-McCaughan, Stacey, Peterson, Alan L., Mintz, Jim, Hale, Willie J., Dondanville, Katherine A., Borah, Elisa V., Blount, Tabatha H., Blankenship, Abby E., Fina, Brooke A., Hall-Clark, Brittany N., Hernandez, Ann Marie, Jacoby, Vanessa M., Malach, Steffany L., Williams, Jacob M., Compton, Katherine E., Bingham, Mona O., Vriend, Catherine A., Inman, Alice W., Brundige, Antoinette, Arzola, Sonya M., Lapiz-Bluhm, M. Danet, Williamson, Douglas E., Litz, Brett T., Hembree, Elizabeth A., Roache, John D., Taylor, Daniel J., Pruiksma, Kristi E., Borah, Adam M., Yarvis, Jeffrey S.
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	England Routledge 01-07-2022 Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects:	Aerobic exercise Aerobics Clinical significance Exercise Humans imaginal exposure Implosive Therapy Male Mental health military Military Personnel Physical fitness Pilot Projects Post traumatic stress disorder posttraumatic stress disorder randomized clinical study Stress Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - therapy military imaginal exposure randomized clinical study Aerobic exercise posttraumatic stress disorder
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Summary:	The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if the efficacy of imaginal exposure for symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) could be improved by adding aerobic exercise. We hypothesized that aerobic exercise would enhance the efficacy of exposure therapy. Active duty service members with clinically significant symptoms of posttraumatic stress (PTSD Checklist-Stressor-Specific Version, [PCL-S], ≥25) were randomized into one of four conditions: exercise only; imaginal exposure only; imaginal exposure plus exercise; no exercise/no exposure therapy (control). Participants (N = 72) were primarily male, Army, noncommissioned officers ranging in age from 22 to 52. PTSD symptom severity decreased over time (p < .0001); however, there were no significant differences between the experimental conditions. The prediction that imaginal exposure augmented with aerobic exercise would be superior to either imaginal exposure alone or aerobic exercise alone was not supported, suggesting that engaging in exercise and imaginal exposure simultaneously may not be any better than engaging in either activity alone. A better understanding of individually administered and combined exercise and exposure therapy interventions for PTSD is warranted.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 ObjectType-News-3 content type line 23
ISSN:	1650-6073 1651-2316
DOI:	10.1080/16506073.2021.2001689