Cognitive Behavioral Therapies Prevent Chronic PTSD in Recent Survivors

Arieh Shalev, MD and colleagues delivered results from the Jerusalem Trauma Outreach and Prevention Study in the Archives of General Psychiatry this month. In a randomized controlled study, the authors were able to demonstrate that, when provided to recent survivors of traumatic events who met threshold for PTSD, Prolonged Exposure (PE), Cognitive Therapy, and delayed PE all prevented chronic PTSD. Escitalopram (Lexapro) was also tested with this population but there was no visible improvement over placebo. Since prevention of PTSD is such a pressing public health issue, this is an exciting finding for those with PTSD symptoms following a traumatic event.