10.1177/0886260504268119 JOURNAL OF INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE / January 2005 Solomon, Heide / THE BIOLOGY OF TRAUMA The Biology of Trauma Implications for Treatment ELDRA P. SOLOMON Center for Mental Health Education, Assessment, and Therapy, Tampa KATHLEEN M. HEIDE University of South Florida During the past 20 years, the development of brain imaging techniques and new bio- chemical approaches has led to increased understanding of the biological effects of psychological trauma. New hypotheses have been generated about brain develop- ment and the roots of antisocial behavior. We now understand that psychological trauma disrupts homeostasis and can cause both short- and long-term effects on many organs and systems of the body. Our expanding knowledge of the effects of trauma on the body has inspired new approaches to treating trauma survivors. Bio- logically informed therapy addresses the physiological effects of trauma, as well as cognitive distortions and maladaptive behaviors. The authors suggest that the most effective therapeutic innovation during the past 20 years for treating trauma survi- vors has been Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), a thera- peutic approach that focuses on resolving trauma using a combination of top-down (cognitive) and bottom-up (affect/body) processing. Keywords: psychological trauma; biology of trauma; neurobiology; Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder; PTSD; effects of psychological trauma on brain development; Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing; EMDR; child abuse; child neglect Both public and professional interest in the effects of trauma have greatly increased as we have experienced the worldwide proliferation of violence, including the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, in the United States, the train bombings in Spain in 2004, and escalation of armed conflict in many parts of the world including Afghanistan, Iraq, and other parts of the Middle East. During the past 20 years, with the help of more sophisticated research tools, we have begun to understand the biological basis of both trauma and violence. With the advent of brain imaging techniques and new biochemical approaches, we are beginning to comprehend the complexities of the rela- 51 JOURNAL OF INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE, Vol. 20 No. 1, January 200551-60 DOI: 10.1177/0886260504268119 © 2005 Sage Publications