American Psychiatric Association August 1999 Tipsheet
July 30, 1999 Release No. 99-29
Richard Ottinger
202-682-6119
[email protected]
Fax: 202-682-6255
Journal articles highlighted in this tipsheet are available in their entirety by calling APAfastFAX at 888-357-7924, APAfastFAX#6171, and selecting the appropriate document number (listed below).
In the August issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry:
Effect of Alcohol on Social Phobic Anxiety Anxiety disorders and alcoholism are intimately associated. Previous research has demonstrated a greater-than-expected association between social phobia and alcohol use disorders. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that drinking alcohol reduces social phobic anxiety.
Treatment seeking individuals with social phobia were asked to give two impromptu speeches. Twenty received a placebo alcoholic drink before both speeches, and 20 subjects received a placebo before the first speech, followed by a moderate dose of alcohol before the second speech. Subjective anxiety rating, heart rate, and cognitions related to social anxiety were used as measures of anxiety.
The results revealed that repeated measures of variance yielded no significant difference in anxiety (subjective, physiological, cognitive) between the alcohol and the placebo groups. Current and past drinking habits did not significantly alter the effect of alcohol on anxiety. The belief that one received alcohol was significantly related to levels of subjective anxiety and negative cognitions. Alcohol does not directly reduce social phobia anxiety. The belief that one received alcohol may reduce social anxiety.
["Effect of Alcohol on Social Phobia Anxiety," by Joseph A. Himle, Ph.D., et. al., p. 1237] APAfastFAX#6913
Other articles of interest in the American Journal of Psychiatry include:
Study of Stalkers Stalkers have a range of motivations, from reasserting power of a partner who rejected them to the desire for a loving relationship. Most stalkers are lonely and socially incompetent, but all have the capacity to frighten and distress their victims. Bringing stalking to an end requires a mixture of appropriate legal sanctions and therapeutic interventions.
["Study of Stalkers," by Paul E. Mullen, M.B.B.S., D.Sc, F.R.C.Psych., et. al. p., 1244] APAfastFAX#6914
PTSD in Abused and Neglected Children Once Grown Victims of child abuse (sexual and physical) and neglect are at increased risk for developing PTSD, but childhood victimization is not a sufficient condition. Family, individual, and lifestyle variables also place individuals at risk and contribute to the symptoms of PTSD
["Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Abused and Neglected Children Grown Up," by Cathy Spatz Widom, et. al., p. 1223] APAfastFAX#6915
In the August issue of Psychiatric Services:
Viagra Useful for Women With Antidepressant-Induced Sexual Dysfunction A University of New Mexico study of nine women patients who reported sexual dysfunction as a result of treatment with antidepressant medications found that sildenafil (Viagra) completely or significantly reversed their symptoms, with few side effects. Developed to treat male erectile dysfunction, sildenafil is increasingly being used by women, but only a few studies have systematically examined its effects.
Most of the women in the study experienced anorgasmia, or failure to experience orgasm, a common side effect of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and others classes of antidepressants. One 50 mg dose was effective for seven of the nine patients in the study; only two needed a 100 mg dose. The authors suggest that use of sildenafil may help prevent some patients from discontinuing antidepressant medication before their depression is successfully treated.
["Sildenafil for Women Patients With Antidepressant-Induced Sexual Dysfunction," pp. 1076-1078. To interview one of the authors contact H. George Nurnberg, M.D., at the University of New Mexico Heath Sciences Center, at 505-272-4167; fax, 505-843-2016; e-mail, [email protected].]
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