Trajectories of Functioning in a Population-Based Sample of Veterans: Contributions of Moral Injury, PTSD and Depression

 

Dec.17, 2020

Shira Maguen, an NCIRE-supported scientist, has published a new study that examines the paths of progression of moral injury in a population-based sample of 9/11 Veterans. The report in the journal Psychological Medicine found: “Moral injury contributes to functional problems beyond what is explained by posttraumatic stress and depression, and moral injury due to perpetration and depression most reliably predicted assignment to trajectories characterized by functional impairment over time.”

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“By better understanding how moral injury contributes to changes in psychosocial functioning during the process of post-deployment reintegration, we can hone assessment, and treatment to aid those at highest risk of adverse outcomes over time,” wrote Maguen and her co-authors.

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Maguen is a UCSF associate professor of psychiatry and mental health director of the SFVAHCS Integrated Care Clinic, which cares for Iraq and Afghanistan war Veterans.

“Additional research is needed to understand the relationship between moral injury and functioning, especially as it relates to suicide-related behavior, hazardous substance use, and other important military health problems.”

 

Nov 17, 2020

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Study Names Peter Elias Top Author in Dermatology Over Four Decades; Kenneth Feingold Ranks Sixth

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Peter Elias, renowned professor, researcher and physician at UCSF and the SFVAHCS, ranked first among the world’s “Top Authors in Dermatology” in a study published online in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. The study, led by University of Colorado researchers, analyzed more than 393,000 dermatology publications between 1980 and 2020. It looked at several criteria, including numbers of publications and

capture “the broad influence of an author’s work by accounting for both productivity and impact.”

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Elias, an NCIRE-funded scientist, has devoted his research to elucidating multiple aspects of epidermal biology, focusing primarily on the skin’s permeability barrier, as well as its other protective functions. His work has helped improve the care or dermatology patients and led to development of novel therapies.

Another NCIRE scientist, Kenneth Feingold, UCSF professor of medicine and SFVAHCS physician, ranked sixth in the world in the “Top Authors of Dermatology (1980-2020)” study. His research has focused on the role of lipids in formation of the stratum corneum, the outermost layer of skin, which in turn generates the epidermal permeability barrier, which is required for terrestrial life. It is anticipated that these studies will point to novel therapies that could improve stratum corneum and permeability barrier function.

The Science of What Uncertainty Can Mean for Your Mind, Body

 

Nov 1, 2020

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From the pandemic, climate change, social and political unrest to the personal level of job uncertainty, illnesses within families and various levels of social isolation – any and all of these contribute to a sense of uncertainty. And the stress of uncertainty, especially when prolonged, is among the most insidious stressors we experience as human beings, says Aoife O’Donovan, PhD, UCSF Associate Professor of Psychiatry, the Center for Health and Community, and NCIRE-supported researcher. She studies the ways psychological stress can lead to mental disorders like PTSD. 

Researchers striving to improve detection of kidney disease in VA System

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Sep 17, 2020

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SFVAHCS nephrologists Michael Shlipak and Michelle Estrella are teaming up to improve kidney care for Veterans by making the cystatin C test available across the VA system. The test is much more accurate in detecting kidney disease than one that has long been used in standard medical practice. Shlipak is co-founder and scientific director and Estrella is co-director of the Kidney Health Research Collaborative, a joint program of UCSF, NCIRE and the SFVAHCS.