"The VA/DoD list of "insufficient evidence" medications is seen as a nod toward the Institute of Medicine (IOM), which in October 2007 released an influential review of the research evidence on PTSD treatments. The report concluded that the strongest evidence of efficacy is for exposure-based therapies...."The article the above quote is from is in Clinical Psychiatry News, it cites a report which concluded there is no virtually no evidence (validated clinical research) to support treating PTSD with ANY psychotropic drugs. Inexplicably, a VA psychiatrist, Gerardo Villareal, is quoted discussing "treatment guidelines;" which ONLY recommend psychotropic drugs; with the only exception occurring in the final sentence of the article. This article states, that as of October 2007, "as for pharmaco-therapy, the quality of the studies up to that point was so flawed that the IOM panel concluded that no evidence-based medication exists for the treatment of PTSD."
Three and one half years later, why are the exposure therapies not considered 'first-line' treatment, since the method was the most effective? Exposure Therapy, according to this report, has, "the strongest evidence of efficacy," yet strangely, is not recommended as a "first-line treatment" for America's traumatized Veterans...Meanwhile prescription drug costs are growing exponentially; drugs are not without serious risks; and apparently are not an effective treatment for PTSD. The psychiatrist quoted in this article states his patients with PTSD tend to take psychiatric drugs for the rest of their lives...
Which begs the question, why are they being prescribed drugs that are known to not be effective for treating PTSD? More importantly, why would Veterans take them for the rest of their lives, is it due to being dependent on them? Psychotropic drugs have inherent risks, including dependence and the potential to cause debilitating disabling iatrogenic illnesses, sudden death, suicide and homicide. This is strange medicine indeed. How did psychotropic drugs become "well established," or even, "front-line treatment" without valid research data supporting their prescription, singularly or concomittantly as a safe or effective treatment for PTSD? The final sentence, (referring to Villareal) states, "He said he strongly encourages his patients to get into a program of exposure-based therapy, which he has found to be quite helpful in reducing polypharmacy."
Why is this 'doctor' not providing the best treatment himself, instead of just writing prescriptions?
Bio-psychiatry's devotion to drugs first, foremost and always, brings to mind a well-known definition of insanity: Doing the same thing over and over expecting different results. Psychiatry continues to devote the vast majority of resources and energy into pharmaco-therapy, while minimizing or ignoring altogether, other treatment modalities. What happened to the Hippocratic Oath to, "First, do no harm...?" Read the article in Clinical Psychiatry News or here.
Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy to combat PTSD
Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder AN ASSESSMENT OF THE EVIDENCE
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