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Post‐traumatic stress disorder and dementia in veterans: A scoping literature review
Author(s) -
Ritchie Kim,
Cramm Heidi,
Aiken Alice,
Donnelly Catherine,
Goldie Katie
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
international journal of mental health nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.911
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1447-0349
pISSN - 1445-8330
DOI - 10.1111/inm.12601
Subject(s) - psycinfo , cinahl , dementia , medline , clinical psychology , psychiatry , medicine , psychology , thematic analysis , qualitative research , psychological intervention , disease , social science , pathology , sociology , political science , law
Emerging research has found an association between post‐traumatic stress disorder ( PTSD ) and dementia in veterans, yet little is known about the nature of this association and how it is conceptualized in the literature. The purpose of this scoping review is to understand how the relationship between PTSD and dementia in veterans is recognized and described in the peer‐reviewed literature. A scoping review was conducted using Arksey and O'Malley's ( International Journal of Social Research Methodology , 8 , 19, 2005) framework. Articles are included if participants were veterans with a focus on PTSD and dementia. A total of six databases ( CINAHL , MEDLINE , EMBASE , Psyc INFO , Health STAR , and PubMed) were searched along with the reference lists of eligible sources in September 2018. Thematic analysis was used to summarize the data. Thirty‐six studies were included in this review. Three main themes emerged from the literature: (i) symptomatic expression of PTSD and dementia; (ii) aetiology underlying the relationship between PTSD and dementia; and (iii) implications of PTSD and dementia on healthcare providers, treatment, and resources. This study highlights the ongoing need to understand mechanisms underlying the association between PTSD and dementia, the need for definition of PTSD symptoms, and to sensitize healthcare providers to the presence of PTSD when caring for veterans with dementia.