Back to Search
Start Over
Clonidine Improves Hyperarousal in Borderline Personality Disorder With or Without Comorbid Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
- Source :
- Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology; April 2009, Vol. 29 Issue: 2 p170-173, 4p
- Publication Year :
- 2009
-
Abstract
- The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Editionborderline personality disorder (BPD) seems to constitute a very heterogeneous category. Therefore, pharmacological therapy is symptom-oriented or targets comorbid conditions. A high comorbidity exists between BPD and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover study, we sought to determine whether the antinoradrenergic agent clonidine was effective in reducing hyperarousal and measures of BPD-specific and general psychopathology in a sample of 18 patients with BPD, with or without comorbid PTSD, and with a prominent hyperarousal syndrome. Hyperarousal as measured by the Clinician Administered PTSD scale improved significantly compared with placebo (P= 0.003) irrespective of PTSD comorbidity. Improvements in general and BPD-typical psychopathology were mainly seen in the PTSD-positive subgroup, whereas the subjective sleep latency (P= 0.005) and the restorative qualities of the sleep (P= 0.014) improved in the whole sample. Improvements, despite the small sample size of this pilot study, lead us to conclude that clonidine might be a useful adjunct to pharmacotherapy in patients with BPD who have marked hyperarousal and/or sleep problems and, in particular, in patients with BPD who have a PTSD comorbidity.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 02710749 and 1533712X
- Volume :
- 29
- Issue :
- 2
- Database :
- Supplemental Index
- Journal :
- Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology
- Publication Type :
- Periodical
- Accession number :
- ejs48463921
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1097/JCP.0b013e31819a4bae