Now, she and her Oxford colleague Dr Lali Iyadurai have taken their model for the first time from the laboratory into a clinical environment to study patients who had a traumatic motor-vehicle accident. Previously she has studied healthy individuals in controlled laboratory environments. HOW TO PLAY MORE WAYS TO WIN.Emily Holmes, professor of psychology at Karolinska InstitutetвЂ™s Department of Clinical Neuroscience, has spent many years studying the kind of preventative effects that behavioural interventions вЂ“ such as a procedure including the computer game Tetris вЂ“ can have on reducing intrusive memories after experimental trauma. The iconic video game gets a new look with Tetris Scratchers. Evidence based treatment for PTSD includes trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy, however we lack preventative interventions to prevent the build-up of symptoms.The 3 Tetris Scratchers from the California Lottery. While most people do not develop PTSD after trauma, one of the core clinical symptoms in those who do involves recurrent and intrusive memories of the trauma (colloquially referred to as вЂflashbacksвЂ™).

Results showed that the researchersвЂ™ hypothesis was right: those who had played Tetris had fewer intrusive memories of the trauma in total over the week immediately following the accident than the controls. By disrupting a process known as memory consolidation.'The study involved 71 motor vehicle accident victims, of whom half received the intervention (recalled the trauma briefly and then played Tetris) while waiting in the hospital emergency department, and half performed another task, all doing so within six hours of the accident. 'Since the game is visually demanding, we wanted to see if it could prevent the intrusive aspects of the traumatic memories from becoming established i.e.

'It would make a huge difference to a great many people if we could create simple behavioural psychological interventions using computer games to prevent post-traumatic suffering and spare them these grueling intrusive memories. A significant proportion of refugees, for example, show symptoms of PTSD.'Anyone can experience trauma,' says Professor Holmes. Also, to examine if similar games can be used for people who already have PTSD. Further research is needed on larger patient groups to see if the psychological benefits of the intervention persist for a longer time вЂ“ such as a month, which is the shortest time at which a PTSD diagnosis can be made.

The study was supported by funding from several bodies including the UK National Institute for Health Research, UK Medical Research Council, and The Wellcome Trust.The full paper, вЂPreventing Intrusive Memories after Trauma via a Brief Intervention Involving Tetris Computer Game Play in the Emergency Department: A Proof-of-Concept Randomized Controlled TrialвЂ™, can be read in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.

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