New Drug For Ptsd?

[Kb3]

I just read this on Medscape and thought I'd pass it on for those who were interested.

[Litz and Keane, 1989]

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Can you just tell us the name? It requires you to sign up for an account to see the article.

 

[Kb3]

The drug is in development and targets a different serotonin receptor than regular antidepressants.

Sorry I forgot you have to register. Can I reproduce the article here by cutting and pasting or is that not allowed?

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Not sure...

Can you NAME it so at the very least we can google it?

Interesting, though I'd probably not be interested in trying it. Anything that messes with my seratonin or norepinephrine or even dopamine for that matter is a recipe for disaster.

 

[Kb3]

Hi, just to clear things up, apologies, it is a new drug TARGET for PTSD, aimed at reduced serotonin 1b receptors in the brains of people who have been exposed to early life trauma.

The study used a PET scan on 96 participants. PTSD dx'd participants had significantly low levels of serotonin 1b than other participants that had experienced severe trauma but did not get PTSD. The non PTSD participants also had lower levels of serotonin 1b than people not exposed to trauma, but not as low as the PTSD participants.

Lower levels of serotonin 1b were also associated with earlier age of trauma, suggesting that the earlier the trauma, the greater the alterations to the brain and the greater severity of PTSD symptoms and the greater risk of developing comorbidities.

The study was conducted by Dr Alexander Neumeister, associate professor of psychiatry at the Mt Sinai school of medicine in Manhattan, and the article states that it is the first evidence of a potential drug target for this disorder.

He also states the importance of clinicians actively screening for trauma in presenting patients because the treatment course should be different for them as compared to nontrauma exposed patients.

Traditional drug therapies are often ineffective for PTSD patients so the hope is that this drug target will be more helpful.

Hope this helps.

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Ahh ok... What is the difference between this and other meds that boost seratonin? Do they work on a different seratonin receptor?

 

[Kb3]

e

Do they work on a different seratonin receptor?

Yes.

 

[Srain]

Yeah, I tried to sign up but blech I always have trouble :ninja:

I think I have read on this. I wonder about these because every med, I wonder which symptom/s it is to help?

 

[Kb3]

My interpretation on it is this: if you buy into the chemical imbalance theory, AD's that target the chemical differences in the early trauma brain (serotonin 1b deficiency as opposed to other serotonin receptors) you will then be augmenting the levels of the correct serotonin receptors, thus providing relief for the specific types of depression and anxiety to early trauma.

Anecdotally, I am on an off label dose of an antipsychotic, at first for my depression, anxiety & insomnia, and now just for insomnia because I have had adverse reactions to traditional antidepressants, which were then labelled as being on the bipolar spectrum.

If there had been a more tailored antidepressant that had hit the right serotonin receptors for me, then I may potentially not have had these reactions, and my treatment would have followed a more efficient course.

I may have gotten that entirely wrong and oversimplified it, but that is how it read to me:).

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Why use a band-aid (medication) when you can train your brain to regulate it's own chemicals (through neurofeedback)?

***gets off my Neurotherapy soap box... After all, it's "just" a placebo effect...***

 

[Srain]

I would say because some times the pain is too difficult to even begin the process of recovery, to get out of bed, to look for help, to make that phone call, to get dress, to keep from physically trying to hurt yourself, flashback come one after another after another, there are many reasons to put a bandaid on....to survive in the meantime.

There is no shame in doing so. I have been doing it just to keep my head from exploding. You don't not put a cast on a broken leg just because eventually it will heal. You do what you have to help at the point when things are at their worst for some people then step down.

I'm not meaning to deny that in some cases this may not be necessary, but for me, there was no way I could EVER have not done without the help of medications...ever....I would have smashed my head in.

 

[Kb3]

I want to echo what Rain said and say that seroquel has been a part of my recovery, not my only means of staying well, and used properly that's what other meds do too.

Now that I have gotten my anxiety & depression under control with effective therapy, I have been cutting back on it and use it solely as a sleep aid.

One day I hope to not need it, but when I was very unwell, it saved my life. My only regret w/it is that it has serious side effects and was at times unpleasant to take. I would have welcomed a drug like the one that is being researched now that might have helped me without the risks and side effects (potentially) that seroquel has. That is why the original article interested me.