Quetiapine therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder.
OBJECTIVE
To report a case of improvement in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after adjunctive therapy with quetiapine.


METHODS
A 49-year-old white man witnessed a traumatic event and experienced severe PTSD. He was started on paroxetine, with increases in dosage and no significant improvement. Quetiapine was added to his regimen, with increased doses resulting in improvement of PTSD symptoms, both clinically and as measured on the Hamilton-D rating scale for depression and the clinician-administered PTSD screen.


CONCLUSIONS
This is the first case published in the English language literature describing improvement in PTSD symptoms after treatment with quetiapine. There are several treatment options for PTSD, but some severe cases may require treatment with antipsychotic medications. Because of the lower risks of serious adverse effects, the newer atypical antipsychotics are much safer than the older antipsychotics. Although use of risperidone and olanzapine in the successful treatment of PTSD has been reported in the literature, there are no reports of quetiapine use in this clinical condition.


CONCLUSIONS
Quetiapine appeared to improve clinical signs and symptoms of PTSD in this patient. It may be a treatment option in other severe cases of PTSD.
Sattar
S Pirzada
SP
School of Medicine, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA. syed.sattar@med.va.gov
Ucci
Bernadette
B
Grant
Kathleen
K
Bhatia
Subhash C
SC
Petty
Frederick
F
D000437:Alcoholism; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003987:Dibenzothiazepines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000069348:Quetiapine Fumarate; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000188:drug therapy*
D014150:Antipsychotic Agents; D003987:Dibenzothiazepines; D000069348:Quetiapine Fumarate