What the trial was testing
The trial enrolled 119 patients with ptsd. The study was sponsored by The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and tracked outcomes across the full group of patients who matched the trial's eligibility profile.
Researchers followed patients through treatment and into recovery, tracking the outcomes that mattered most for the disease being studied.
What the results showed
85% of veterans who received brain stimulation still had reduced PTSD symptoms one month later.
JAMA network open · 2026 · NCT02853032
These findings — that veterans getting real brain stimulation had lasting symptom relief versus 59% with sham treatment — were published in the JAMA network open and represent the headline result of the study.
Researchers tracked outcomes across 119 patients enrolled in the trial. The result was consistent enough across the group that the team felt confident reporting it.
What this means for patients
For patients with ptsd, this result changes the calculus on what to ask their care team about. Whether it changes day-to-day care depends on factors like disease subtype, prior treatments, and where the patient is in their care journey.
What you can do now
This brain stimulation technique is not yet widely available as a standard PTSD treatment. The study was done at one specialized military facility. If you have PTSD, talk to your doctor about current treatment options like therapy and medication, and ask whether any research studies are open near you.
Eligibility for the treatments mentioned above depends on specific test results and clinical history. Bring this summary, the trial name, and your most recent labs or pathology report to your next visit.
Open ptsd trials
An Evaluation of Two PTSD Assessments in an Active Duty and Military Veteran Sample
Given the high prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans and active duty military, the focus of this research study is to test the reliability of two new PTSD assessments, the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-5 (CAPS-5) and the PTSD Symptom Scale Interview for DSM-5 (PSSI-5) and compare the results between the two new assessments and the previous "gold standard", the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale for DSM-IV (CAPS-IV). Biomarkers believed to be related to PTSD (e.g., biofluid biomarkers, cognitive and physiological markers, and neural activity as measured by EEG) will be collected to inform targeted interventions in specific groups of patients and other large-scale biomarker discovery efforts in the field. Participants will be 950 male and female active duty military and veterans ages 18 or older who have been exposed to at least one traumatic event.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in Veterans With PTSD
With this research investigators hope to begin to understand how rTMS can improve posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. TMS improves PTSD through two interrelated mechanisms: change in brain limbic system function and change in systemic inflammatory activation. Participants who decide to join this study, will receive ten rTMS treatments. All participants will undergo a 40-minute rTMS procedure with a member of the study team 10 times over 2-4 weeks. Participants will undergo fMRI scans of the head in order to help researchers better understand potential effects of rTMS on brain activity. In addition, participants will be asked to give two breath and blood samples to look for signs of general inflammation.