title: Social anxiety disorder: designing a pharmacologic treatment strategy.
abstract: Growing appreciation of the prevalence of and morbid sequelae associated with social anxiety disorder has focused increasing interest on the development of effective treatment strategies. A number of pharmacologic interventions, including the monoamine oxidase inhibitors, reversible inhibitors of monoamine oxidase A, beta-blockers, benzodiazepines, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, have demonstrated efficacy for the treatment of social anxiety disorder. The choice of initial treatment depends on a variety of factors including comorbidity, prior treatment history, patient preference, and adverse effect profile. This article will examine the effectiveness of various pharmacologic agents for the treatment of social anxiety disorder, discuss considerations for long-term management, and review strategies for optimizing treatment in patients who are partially responsive or unresponsive to initial therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston 02114, USA. mpollack@partners.org
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Pollack
mesh_terms: D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000465:Algorithms; D001569:Benzodiazepines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D015897:Comorbidity; D006801:Humans; D008996:Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D010698:Phobic Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists; D001569:Benzodiazepines; D008996:Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors