Study Shows Drugs Not Working for Treating PTSD
A new study is showing that drugs being prescribed to the troops suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) aren’t working as doctors would have liked. In fact, for some of the soldiers, the medications aren’t working at all.
Right now, PTSD is the most common condition our troops suffer from. For a lot of those troops — and that includes the veterans — their doctors are prescribing medications like Paxil and Zoloft to no avail. The pills simply aren’t working. Current research is showing that even the second line of treatment may not be of any help, either.
Veterans who are battling PTSD generally experience symptoms including flashbacks or nightmares. Many have difficulty readjusting to living at home again. Right now, antidepressants like Paxil and Zoloft are the go-to drugs that doctors run to for treating PTSD, but the soldiers’ symptoms do not seem to improve.
Doctors have started to try a different type of medication besides Paxil or other antidepressants. The new medication is called Risperdal (risperidone). Until now, the drug hasn’t been formally tested as a treatment for PTSD. However, a new six-month study that evaluated more than 250 veterans has discovered that the Risperdal didn’t actually lessen the severity of their PTSD symptoms, anxiety or depression. The study also found that soldiers’ quality of life didn’t improve, either; rather, they were more likely to gain weight and were often tired.
"Sometimes the common wisdom is not accurate, and we really do need to pay attention to what medications have evidence to support their use in our patients," says UCLA psychiatrist Dr. Ian Cook.
So far, the study results are disappointing to the researchers with high hopes for the new drug. But they are saying that the new drug's failure shows some progress, in that at least they know what doesn’t work. All they have to do now is find a drug that actually does.
