@article{ref1,
title="Prolonged exposure therapy for combat- and terror-related posttraumatic stress disorder: a randomized control comparison with treatment as usual",
journal="Journal of clinical psychiatry",
year="2011",
author="Nacasch, Nitzah and Foa, Edna B. and Huppert, Jonathan D. and Tzur, Dana and Fostick, Leah and Dinstein, Yula and Polliack, Michael and Zohar, Joseph",
volume="72",
number="9",
pages="1174-1180",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: Empirically based studies have demonstrated that prolonged exposure therapy effectively reduces posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in a vast range of traumas, yet reports of the efficacy of such therapies in combat- and terror-related PTSD are scarce. In this article, we examine the efficacy of prolonged exposure therapy in combat- and terror-related PTSD in comparison to treatment as usual (TAU). METHOD: Between July 2002 and October 2005, 30 patients of a trauma unit within a psychiatric outpatient clinic were recruited and randomized into prolonged exposure versus TAU therapies. Patients were diagnosed with chronic PTSD (Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview criteria) related to combat- (n = 19) or terror-related (n = 11) trauma. Main outcome measures included symptoms of PTSD and depression, as measured by the PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview Version and the Beck Depression Inventory. RESULTS: Posttraumatic stress disorder symptom severity was significantly lower in patients who received prolonged exposure therapy in comparison to patients who received TAU (F(1,24) = 35.3, P < .001). Similar results have emerged in measures of depression and state and trait anxiety. In addition, a significant change from pretreatment to follow-up was found for the prolonged exposure group (F(1,14) = 80.5, P < .0001), but not for the TAU group (F(1,10.3) = 0.6, P = .44). CONCLUSIONS: Findings indicate that, similar to PTSD related to other types of trauma, prolonged exposure therapy is beneficial in the amelioration of combat- and terror-related PTSD symptoms. In addition, prolonged exposure was superior to TAU in the short- and long-term reduction of PTSD and depression symptoms. TRIAL REGISTRATION: clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00229372.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0160-6689",
doi="10.4088/JCP.09m05682blu",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.4088/JCP.09m05682blu"
}