Psychopharmacology of anxiety disorders (original) (raw)
Related papers
Depression and Anxiety, 2005
The past decade has brought major new developments in the psychopharmacologic management of generalized anxiety disorder and social phobia. We examined medication-prescribing patterns for the treatment of these anxiety disorders for 12 years to assess changes in patients' anti-anxiety psychotropic medication usage during that period of evolving practice guidelines. We examined psychotropic medication use in 305 patients with generalized anxiety disorder and 232 with social phobia enrolled in the Harvard/Brown Anxiety Disorders Research Project (HARP), a prospective, longitudinal study of anxiety disorders. Psychotropic treatment patterns seem to have remained relatively stable over 12 years with benzodiazepines the medications most commonly used for both generalized anxiety disorder and social phobia. Comparatively, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) and venlafaxine usage as stand-alone medications for these disorders remained low throughout the follow-up period. At the 12-year follow-up, 24% of patients with generalized anxiety disorder and 30% of patients with social phobia were utilizing neither an SSRI/selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) nor a benzodiazepine. Treatment recommendations for use of SSRIs and venlafaxine in the management of generalized anxiety disorder and social phobia initially promulgated in 1998 had a modest impact on changes in psychopharmacologic practice 4-5 years later. Difficulties in the implementation of treatment guidelines are discussed.
Long-term goals in the management of acute and chronic anxiety disorders
Canadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie, 2004
Many anxiety disorders are not treated to remission (symptom-free state); however, this should be the minimum goal of therapy. Antidepressant therapies have shown significant beneficial effects in the management of anxiety disorders, with some variability in results in specific disorders. In social anxiety disorder, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and venlafaxine extended release (XR) have demonstrated efficacy, with response rates varying between 40% and 68%. Monoamine oxidase inhibitors and cognitive-behavioural therapies are also effective. In patients with generalized anxiety disorder, benzodiazepines, paroxetine, and venlafaxine XR have demonstrated remission rates that are 15% to 25% higher than placebo. In patients with posttraumatic stress disorder, about 60% to 70% of patients experienced a response with antidepressant therapy, compared with about 40% on placebo, while remission rates in one study were 30% with venlafaxine, 24% with sertraline, and 20% with placebo....
The diagnosis of and treatment recommendations for anxiety disorders
Deutsches Ärzteblatt international, 2014
Anxiety disorders (panic disorder/agoraphobia, generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, and specific phobias) are the most common mental illnesses. For example, the 12-month prevalence of panic disorder/agoraphobia is 6%. This guideline is based on controlled trials of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy, retrieved by a systematic search for original articles that were published up to 1 July 2013. Experts from 20 specialty societies and other organizations evaluated the evidence for each treatment option from all available randomized clinical trials and from a synthesis of the recommendations of already existing international and German guidelines. 403 randomized controlled trials were evaluated. It was concluded that anxiety disorders should be treated with psychotherapy, psychopharmacological drugs, or both. Response rates to initial treatment vary from 45% to 65%. Cognitive behavioral therapy is supported by higher-level evidence than any other psychotherapeutic technique. Psyc...
Anxiety disorders: a comprehensive review of pharmacotherapies
Mount Sinai Journal of Medicine: A Journal of Translational and Personalized Medicine, 2008
This article reviews the evidence from randomized, placebo-controlled trials and meta-analyses of pharmacological treatments of the following anxiety disorders: generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder. There is evidence from multiple randomized, placebo-controlled trials to support the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors as first-line pharmacotherapy in these disorders, and a number of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors have received US Food and Drug Administration approval for these indications. Serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors are now emerging as first-line treatments for these anxiety disorders alongside the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and have been US Food and Drug Administration-approved for some of these indications as well. Benzodiazepines are also effective treatments for anxiety disorders, and although this medication class has the advantage of a rapid onset of action, their use is limited by their potential for abuse and lack of antidepressant properties. In addition to reviewing the clinical trials that have investigated the anxiolytic effects of these commonly used medications, we review the evidence for novel uses of other agents, including anticonvulsants and atypical antipsychotics, in anxiety disorders.
Current Pharmacological and Non-Pharmacological Treatments of Panic Disorder/Agoraphobia
Anxiety disorders represent the most prevalent psychiatric disorders, however, many patients who might benefit from treatment are not diagnosed or treated. This may partly be due to lack of awareness of the anxiety disorders by primary care practitioners and by the sufferers themselves. In addition, the stigma still associated with psychiatric disorders and lack of confidence in psychiatric treatments are factors leading to no/under recognition and treatment, or the use of unnecessary or inappropriate treatments. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive review of the pharmacological treatment of panic disorders (PD). The first-line treatments include selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) are similarly effective, but are less well tolerated than the SSRIs/SNRIs. In treatment-resistant cases, benzodiazepines like alprazolam may be used in patients with no history of dependency and tolerance. Other treatment options include irreversible and reversible monoamine-oxidase inhibitors, hydroxyzine, and others. Atypical antipsychotics may also be effective in resistant cases. Besides pharmacological treatments, some psychological strategies have been shown to be effective, in particular, cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and other variants of behavior therapy have been sufficiently investigated in controlled studies, and, therefore, will be reviewed herein.
Social Anxiety Disorder Assessment and Pharmacological Management
German Journal of Psychiatry
Social phobia is one of the most common disorders in the general population, with a lifetime prevalence of 11% to 15%, and is highly prevalent in primary care settings. Only 5% of social phobic patients seek treatment, despite numerous related complications when the disorder goes untreated. It is advisable, therefore, that clinicians be prepared to recognize and effectively manage patients with this anxiety disorder. We provide a brief review of the assessment, differential diagnosis and pharmacological treatment of social phobia. We based our suggestions for treatment on the results of randomized clinical trials found in the PUB- (gabapentin, venlafaxine and nefazodone). When SSRI treatment is ineffective, psychiatrists should not shy away from prescribing benzodiazepines or MAOIs if the risks of abuse/ dependency (with benzodiazepines) or hypertensive crises (with MAOIs) are outweighed by the suffering and impairment associated with severe cases (German J Psychiatry 2002;5:40-48).
The evidence-based pharmacological treatment of social anxiety disorder
The International …, 2003
Social anxiety disorder (SAD) is a highly prevalent and often disabling disorder. This paper reviews the pharmacological treatment of SAD based on published placebo-controlled studies and published metaanalyses. It addresses three specific questions: What is the first-line treatment of SAD? How long should treatment last? What should be the management of treatment-resistant cases? Based on their efficacy for SAD and common comorbid disorders, tolerability, and safety, SSRIs should be considered as the first-line treatment for most patients. Less information is available regarding the optimal length of treatment, although individuals who discontinue treatment after 12-20 wk appear more likely to relapse than those who continue on medication. Even less empirical evidence is available to support strategies for treatmentresistant cases. Clinical experience suggests that SSRI non-responders may benefit from augmentation with benzodiazepines or gabapentin, or from switching to MAOIs, RIMAs, benzodiazepines or gabapentin. Cognitive-behavioural therapy may also be a helpful adjunct or alternative.
Pharmacological treatment of social anxiety disorder: A meta-analysis
Depression and Anxiety, 2003
Placebo-controlled trials have evaluated the efficacy of several medications in the treatment of social anxiety disorder but information regarding their relative efficacy is lacking. We compared the efficacy of medications systematically studied for the treatment of social anxiety disorder using meta-analytic techniques. The methodology included a database search of articles published between January 1980 and June 2001 and manual searches of bibliographies in published manuscripts. Trials were included if they reported outcome data on the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) or a categorical measure of responder status. Data were extracted independently by two authors. The Q statistic was used to assess homogeneity across trials. All analyses were conducted using intent-to-treat data. There was substantial heterogeneity across trials. The medications with largest effect sizes were phenelzine [effect size, 1.02; 95% Confidence Interval (CI), 0.52-1.52], clonazepam (effect size, .97; 95% CI, 0.49-1.45), gabapentin (effect size, .78; 95% CI, 0.29-1.27), brofaromine (effect size, .66; 95% CI, 0.38-0.94), and the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs; effect size, .65; 95% CI, 0.50-0.81). There were no statistically significant differences between medications or medication groups. However, formal methods of interim monitoring adapted for meta-analyses suggested strongest evidence of efficacy for SSRIs and brofaromine. Several medications are efficacious for the treatment of social anxiety disorder. The stability of the SSRI effect size estimate in conjunction with other evidence for safety and tolerability and their ability to treat comorbid conditions supports the use of SSRIs as the first-line treatment. Direct comparisons of SSRIs vs. other promising medications deserve consideration. Depression and Anxiety 18:29-40,