Video games may alleviate posttraumatic stress disorder episodes

A single treatment session that includes the video game “Tetris” can reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). That’s according to a new study of health care workers who worked during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study, conducted under the leadership of scientists from Uppsala University, is published in the journal BMC Medicine.

Emily Holmes, a professor at Uppsala University who led the study, said: “It is possible to reduce the frequency of unpleasant and intrusive memories of trauma and thereby alleviate other symptoms of PTSD. Just one session of guided treatment with a psychologist produced positive effects that persisted five weeks and even six months after treatment.  In today’s turbulent times, trauma can touch everyone. And if this kind of success can be achieved through the everyday use of video games, it can be a great and affordable way to help many people.”

A hallmark symptom of PTSD is unpleasant and intrusive memories of the traumatic event in the form of mental images, commonly referred to as “flashbacks”. Other symptoms can manifest as avoidance, excessive stress, and problems such as difficulty sleeping and concentrating. Emily Holmes and her colleagues have long studied ways to prevent PTSD. In this study, the researchers focused specifically on getting rid of flashbacks. And they found that by replacing intrusive memories with a visual task, other symptoms of PTSD can be reduced.

The treatment is based on what’s called mental rotation, which is the basis of the game “Tetris.” That is, when looking at an object from one angle, the player imagines what the object would look like if it were rotated to a different position and could be seen from a different angle.

A total of 164 people participated in the study. All participants tracked their intrusive memories of trauma during a week.

They were then randomized to one of two tasks. Half of the group was asked to play “Tetris” with mental rotation. The other half, the control group, were given a non-visual task: listening to the radio.

All participants kept a diary of their flashbacks. At the beginning of the study, participants experienced an average of 15 flashbacks per week. Five weeks into the study, participants in the control group had an average of five episodes per week, and participants in the gaming group had only one.

Six months after treatment, participants in the gaming group had less severe PTSD symptoms. When assessed with a widely recognized questionnaire (PCL-5), often used to assess all PTSD symptoms, the gaming group experienced about half as many problems as the control group.

“It was amazing to us that the treatment method was so effective and that the improvement in symptoms lasted for six months. I realize that it may seem quite unlikely that such a brief intervention involving video games but not involving an in-depth discussion of trauma with a therapist could be of benefit. But this study provides scientifically controlled evidence that a single session of psychologist-led digital therapy can reduce intrusive memories and that it can be used safely by participants,” Emily Holmes told us.

It looks like scientists may one day be able to provide people with a tool to prevent and treat early symptoms of PTSD, i.e., “a cognitive vaccine, much like we now vaccinate against certain infectious physical diseases.

Medikom Сlinic Ukraine,KyivLeave a request

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Published: 23.09.2024

Updated: 16.10.2024

Medical author, Medical editor:

Stepan Yuk

Medical expert:

PhD. Olexandr Voznyak