Biological And Pharmacological Treatment Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Older Adults

This article focuses on the current state of treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with an emphasis on meeting the needs of older adults and elderly persons who are in the early stages of PTSD or who have chronic PTSD. The authors review some of the pre-disaster and post-disaster interventions that clinicians can employ if older patients present with early signs and symptoms of PTSD. The authors discuss how concepts such as disaster immunization, resilience, and psychological first aid affect treatment of PTSD. In some patients, use of medication to treat the symptoms of PTSD may be necessary. This article gives an overview of the considerations and evidence to guide safe and appropriate prescribing of a pharmacologic agent-namely antidepressants and benzodiazepines-to treat the symptoms of PTSD. The final article in the series will discuss psychotherapeutic approaches to treat PTSD