Browsing by Author "Ainamani, Herbert E."

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The impact of an exercise training intervention on cortisol levels and posttraumatic stress disorder in juveniles from an Ugandan refugee settlement: study protocol for a randomized control trial
(http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1186/s13063-018-2753-x&domain=pdf, 2018-03-15) Budde, Henning; Akko, Davin P.; Ainamani, Herbert E.; Murillo-Rodríguez, Eric; Weierstall, Roland
Background: Latest research demonstrates a significant improvement in stress-related symptoms in psychological disorders as a result of exercise training (ET). Controlled clinical trials further validate the significance of ET by demonstrating lower salivary cortisol levels in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after intervention. A significant change in cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) levels can already be found after an 8–12-week ET program. The proposed study aims to investigate the impact of an 8-week ET on PTSD symptoms and changes in cortisol levels in a juvenile refugee sample from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at an Ugandan refugee settlement. It is the first to implement an ET intervention in a resource-poor, post-conflict setting. Methods/design: In a randomized controlled trial, 198 adolescent participants aged 13–16 years from the DRC who, suffer from PTSD, will be investigated. The participants are based at the Nakivale refugee settlement, an official refugee camp in Uganda, Africa, which is among the largest in the world. The participants will be randomized into an Exercise Training (ET) group with a maximum heart rate (HRmax) of > 60%, an Alternative Intervention (AI) group with low-level exercises, and a Waiting-list Control (WC) group. After the 8-week interventional phase, changes in cortisol awakening response (CAR) and DHEA in the ET group that correspond to an improvement in PTSD symptoms are expected that remain at follow-up after 3 months. Discussion: To date, there is no controlled and reliable longitudinal study examining the effects of an ET program on symptom severity in individuals with PTSD that can be explained with a harmonization of cortisol secretion. The presented study design introduces an intervention that can be implemented with little expenditure. It aims to provide a promising low-threshold and cost-effective treatment approach for the application in resource-poor settings.
Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy
(American Psychological Association`, 2020-08-27) Ainamani, Herbert E.; Gumisiriza, Nolbert; Rukundo, Godfrey Z.
As different countries grapple with COVID-19, stringent measures aimed at controlling its spread have been put in place. However, these preventive measures coupled with the fear of contracting the disease are likely to have negative effects on the mental health of the general population. We describe the containment measures taken by the government of Uganda and highlight how these measures are likely to impact the mental health of different groups of people. We also propose future directions and interventions on mental health problems resulting from COVID-19 pandemic.
PTSD symptom severity relates to cognitive and psycho-social dysfunctioning – a study with Congolese refugees in Uganda
(Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis group, 2017-02-14) Ainamani, Herbert E.; Elbert, Thomas; Olema, David K.; Hecker, Tobias
Background: In the ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), civilians have been heavily exposed to traumatic stressors. Traumatizing experiences cumulatively heighten the risk for trauma-related disorders, and with it affect cognitive and psycho-social functioning. Objectives: We aimed at investigating the association between trauma-related disorders and cognitive and psycho-social functioning and hypothesized that PTSD symptom severity would negatively correlate with executive functioning, working memory and psycho-social functioning in everyday life. Method: In total, 323 Congolese refugees (mean age: 31.3 years) who arrived in the Ugandan Nakivale refugee settlement after January 2012 were assessed regarding their exposure to traumatic events, PTSD symptom severity (posttraumatic symptom scale interview), executive functioning (Tower of London), working memory performance (Corsi block tapping task) and psycho-social dysfunctioning (Luo functioning scale). Results: Hierarchical regression analyses indicated a significant negative association between PTSD symptom severity and working memory (β = –0.32, p < 0.001), as well as executive functions (β = –0.19, p = 0.003). Furthermore, the impairment of psycho-social functioning in everyday life was positively related with PTSD symptom severity (β = 0.70, p < 0.001), and negatively with executive functioning (β = –0.15, p = 0.003). However, working memory performance was not significantly related to psycho-social dysfunctioning (β = 0.09, p > 0.05). Conclusion: Trauma survivors not only suffer from the core PTSD symptoms but also from impaired cognitive functioning. PTSD symptom severity seems furthermore to be related to impaired psycho-social functioning. Our findings suggest that trauma-related mental health problems may heighten the risk for poverty and lack of prospect and further aggravate the consequences of war and conflict.