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Women and traumatic events.
1Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia 19104, USA. foa@mail.med.upenn.edu
The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry
|August 10, 2001
Summary
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) affects over 30% of trauma victims, with women disproportionately affected. Exposure therapy is an effective treatment for PTSD, particularly for women with trauma histories.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Psychology
- Trauma Studies
Background:
- Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) recognized in 1980, characterized by reexperiencing, avoidance, numbing, and hyperarousal.
- Over 30% of trauma survivors develop persistent PTSD symptoms; women are twice as likely as men to be affected.
- Cognitive-behavioral interventions are the most studied psychosocial treatments for PTSD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the efficacy of psychosocial treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder.
- To highlight the effectiveness of exposure therapy for specific populations.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on psychosocial treatments for PTSD.
- Analysis of studies focusing on cognitive-behavioral interventions, particularly exposure therapy.
Main Results:
- Exposure therapy is highly effective for adult women with sexual or non-sexual assault trauma, and childhood sexual abuse survivors.
- Supportive counseling is less effective than exposure therapy but superior to no treatment.
Conclusions:
- Exposure therapy is a recommended and effective treatment for PTSD in women.
- Further research may explore variations in treatment efficacy across different demographics and trauma types.