Citation

Silver JM, Yudofsky SC, Slater JA, Gold RK, Stryer BL, Williams DT, Wolland H, Endicott J. J. Neuropsychiatry Clin. Neurosci. 1999; 11(3): 328-335.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, Lenox Hill Hospital, New York, NY 10021-1883, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1999, American Neuropsychiatric Association, Publisher American Psychiatric Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

10440008

Abstract

Violent behavior in psychiatric patients may result in long-term hospitalization. There is no FDA-approved psychopharmacologic treatment for aggression. In this study, 20 chronically aggressive hospitalized patients were administered 1 week of placebo followed by an open trial of increasing doses of propranolol. Patients who had an equivocal or definite clinical response were entered into an open add-on double-blind discontinuation study phase. Aggressive behavior was objectively documented throughout the study. After the open phase of the study, 7 patients had a greater than 50% decrease in aggressive behavior. Four patients entered the double-blind discontinuation phase. The clinical course of 3 of those patients was consistent with the positive response to propranolol. The results of this study are consistent with a therapeutic effect of propranolol in some patients with aggressive behavior. Further studies are indicated.

Language: en