Management of Acute Stress, PTSD, and Bereavement: WHO Recommendations

“To inform development of a new module on conditions specifically related to stress, WHO developed new guidelines to be released this week4 for the following symptoms occurring in the first month after trauma exposure: acute traumatic stress symptoms, insomnia, enuresis, dissociative symptoms, and hyperventilation (Table). In addition, guidelines were developed for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and bereavement. These conditions were chosen for their relevance in nonspecialized health settings. This Viewpoint describes work underpinning the expansion of the mhGAP Intervention Guide to include a module on assessment and management of conditions specifically related to stress—A using terminology for conditions consistent with proposals for the International Classification of Diseases, 11th revision.”