Psychological And Pharmacological Treatments For Adults With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder A Systematic Review Update

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) involves a group of symptoms experienced after exposure to a potentially traumatic event. Symptoms may include re-experiencing the event; avoiding situations that trigger memories of that event; experiencing increased negative feelings and beliefs; experiencing feelings of hyperarousal; these feelings may include irritability, agitation, anger, or being on alert; and experiencing various combinations of these indicators. The traumatic event (stressor) must involve either witnessing an actual or threatened death or serious injury or other threat to one's physical integrity or witnessing an event that involves death, injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of another person. Alternatively, the event must involve learning about unexpected or violent death, serious harm, or threat of death or injury experienced by a family member or other close associate. Some traumatic events that are directly experienced include military combat, violent personal assault, being part of a hostage situation, a terrorist attack, torture, natural or manmade disasters, and being diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. They can also comprise relational trauma such as sexual, physical, and emotional abuse and domestic violence. Not all people exposed to a potentially traumatic event, however, go on to develop posttraumatic stress symptoms and PTSD. This systematic review uses current methods to update a report published in 2013 that evaluated psychological and pharmacological treatments of adults with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This review focuses on updating the earlier work, expanding the range of treatments examined, addressing earlier uncertainties, identifying ways to improve care for PTSD patients, and reducing variation in existing treatment guidelines.

This evidence-based clinical guideline commissioned by NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) presents guidance on the management of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in primary and secondary care.

"This casebook offers detailed guidance to help practitioners understand and implement the treatments recommended in the American Psychological Association's Clinical Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Adults. The authors describe the unique factors involved in PTSD treatment, and core competencies necessary for providers. Chapters then explain each treatment described in the guideline, summarize the empirical evidence for their effectiveness, and offer rich, detailed case examples that demonstrate how readers can use these interventions with real clients. Treatments described include cognitive behavior therapy, cognitive processing therapy, cognitive therapy and prolonged exposure, brief eclectic psychotherapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, and narrative exposure therapy. Medications including fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline, and venlafaxine are discussed as well. Intended for use with the Guideline, this book combines the best available research with expert clinical recommendations, to help readers make the clinical decisions that are best for their patients"--

The culmination of more than 25 years of clinical work and research, this is the authoritative presentation of cognitive processing therapy (CPT) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Written by the treatment's developers, the book includes session-by-session guidelines for implementation, complete with extensive sample dialogues and 40 reproducible client handouts. It explains the theoretical and empirical underpinnings of CPT and discusses how to adapt the approach for specific populations, such as combat veterans, sexual assault survivors, and culturally diverse clients. The large-size format facilitates photocopying and day-to-day use. Purchasers also get access to a Web page where they can download and print the reproducible materials. CPT is endorsed by the U.S. Departments of Veterans Affairs and Defense, the International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies, and the U.K. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as a best practice for the treatment of PTSD.

This workbook is to be used by patients who are in a cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy program designed for patients who have posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and a co-occurring alcohol or drug use disorder.

This book could not have been conceptualized or published 20 years ago. Indeed, it is doubtful that we could have organized the material for this handbook 10 years ago. Over the last 20 years, however, the painstaking efforts of many clinical researchers working with a variety of resistive psychopathologies have resulted in specific psychotherapies and pharmacotherapies that are effective with a significant propor tion of patients, at least for some of the disorders. Much clinical research remains to be carried out in the forthcoming decades. But now that we are nearing the 21st century, at least some statement about efficacy can be made. In 1967, Gordon Paul succinctly stated that the ultimate goal of treatment outcome research is to determine "What treatment, by whom, is most effective for this individual with that specific problem, and under which set of circumstances" (p. 111). At that time, empirical evaluations of psychosocial and pharmacologic treatments were few and far between. Methodological strategies for determining treatment effectiveness were also in the formative stage, as exemplified by introduc tion of control groups that received inactive interventions (i. e. , placebo) and the relatively recent practice of comparing two or more treatments in addition to placebo. In the almost three decades since Paul's oft-quoted dictum, both the quantity and the quality of treatment outcome research with adults have increased dramati cally.