Adriana Feder, MD, center, with Leah Cahn, LMSW, Clinical Social Worker, left, and Olivia Diab, Clinical Research Coordinator.
Fifteen years after the destruction of the World Trade Center, many first responders continue to grapple with health issues stemming from their work at Ground Zero, including those who report symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
In a recently published study in the Journal of Psychiatric Research, researchers led by Adriana Feder, MD, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, found that police responders, who had more training and preparedness for disaster response, continued to maintain lower rates of elevated PTSD symptoms than construction workers or other “nontraditional” responders. Dr. Feder also serves as Associate Director for Research at the World Trade Center Mental Health Program at Mount Sinai.
The latest research on PTSD, along with other studies examining the health challenges faced by 9/11 responders and survivors, will be presented at a special symposium hosted by Mount Sinai on Wednesday, September 14, at the New York Academy of Medicine. (See details on page 4.) There, participants will hear from experts who are treating patients for upper respiratory complications, asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease, various cancers, and other conditions stemming from their exposure to at least 70 carcinogens when the Twin Towers collapsed.
As one of five Clinical Centers of Excellence (CCEs) established through the World Trade Center Health Program, specialists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have diagnosed and treated more than 20,000 first responders and survivors for a variety of illnesses since the earliest days following 9/11.
In the most recent study on PTSD, Dr. Feder worked with co-principal investigators Robert Pietrzak, PhD, MPH, and Steven Southwick, MD, from the Yale School of Medicine on a web-based survey that was completed by more than 4,000 rescue and recovery workers an average of 12 years after the 9/11 attacks. The workers’ responses were studied in conjunction with longitudinal data that was collected during their earlier health monitoring visits to one of five CCEs.
“Cumulative stressors, including the severity of exposure at Ground Zero, additional traumas or difficult life events in the years following 9/11, and other medical conditions developed after 9/11 all added to the severity of a responder’s PTSD symptoms over time,” says Dr. Feder. Two potentially protective factors that might contribute to a responder’s resilience, she adds, were “the ability to maintain a higher level of social support and a sense of purpose in life.” Conversely, avoidance in dealing with the trauma of 9/11 was associated with persistent PTSD symptoms over time.
Another ongoing study by Dr. Feder’s team—in collaboration with Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai researchers Rachel Yehuda, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry, and Neuroscience, and Nikolaos Daskalakis, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry—is investigating potential blood biomarkers of PTSD symptom severity and resilience. This includes examining stress hormone levels and potential differences in gene expression.