title: [Pharmacological treatment of borderline personality disorder].
abstract: Borderline personality disorder is characterised by a pervasive pattern of instability in affect regulation, impulse control, interpersonal relationships and self image. Clinical signs of the disorder include emotional dysregulation, impulsive aggression, repeated self-injury, and chronic suicidal tendencies, which make these patients frequent users of mental health resources. The treatment of this kind of patients (very dependent, with a great tendency to overestimating the power of the drugs prescribed) must be organized over a psychotherapeutic strategy, which will help them to deal with their troublesome relationships. The psychopharmacological approach is useful but is limited, giving the borderline patients a symptomatic relief. When the affective symptoms are the target, drugs like the SSRI antidepressants are the best choice. If the patient presents a behavioural discontrol pattern, then the psychiatrist will prescribe an SSRI alone or with a mood stabilizer or an antipsychotic. Finally, if the patient has transient psychotic symptoms, then the temporary use of typical or atypical antipsychotics is the rule.
authors.affiliation: Primera Cátedra de Farmacología, Facultad de Medicina, UBA, Av. Códoba 1752 2 B, (1055) Buenos Aires. smazaira@arnet.com.ar
authors.forename: Silvina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mazaira
mesh_terms: D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents