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PTSD is a psychiatric illness resulting from a physical or psychological trauma that is sometimes related to warfare, but of course occurs in the case of civilian trauma as well. However, wars have been a propitious time for studying PTSD.

Although many symptoms of psychiatric disorders are likely due to maladaptive plasticity in mesolimbic dopamine reward pathways, there is still a shortage of data on the specific nature of this plasticity and the role it may play in influencing cognition and behavior. More in this video.

Mindfulness training is a viable treatment tool that rivals psychopharmaceutical agents for the treatment of addictions, anxiety, depression, and other psychiatric disorders. In this video, Dr Judson Brewer describes the value of MT in psychiatry.

For patients with treatment-resistant depression—especially geriatric patients—ECT is a viable treatment option . . . one that should no longer be relegated to the option of last resort. Here to discuss the latest advances in ECT techniques is Dr Charles Kellner.

Sleep disorders can pose impairments beyond cognition (eg, difficulty processing, unclear thinking). Here, Dr Karl Doghramji discusses a number of impairments associated with insomnia.

When it comes to aging, is there anything to look forward to from a neurocognitive perspective? What can we do to protect our brains from cognitive and functional decline? In this podcast, geriatric psychiatrist Helen Lavretksy outlines strategies to stimluate and revitalize an aging brain.

What are the latest findings on acute and chronic effects of alcohol on the human brain? Here to discuss the latest research is psychiatrist and neuroscientist Nora D. Volkow, MD, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Advances in basic molecular research of alcoholism await translation into important new clinical insights. Here to shed some light in this area is John Matochik, PhD, Program Director in the Division of Neuroscience and Behavior at NIAAA.

In the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, incarcerated psychiatric patients at Bellevue Hospital had to be evacuated, without the help of elevators, electronic or phone communication, or even running water. Here, Director of Forensic Psychiatry at NYU School of Medicine and Bellevue Hospital Center, Elizabeth Ford, MD, gives a first-hand account.

"I place a stethoscope in my ears and listen to the heart when I’ve run out of things to say. . . ."