Fluoxetine in relapse prevention of PTSD

Abstract

Comments on an article by F. Martenyi et al (see record 2002-04799-009) regarding fluoxetine vs placebo in prevention of PTSD relapse. The current author argues that the idea that fluoxetine is effective and well tolerated needs careful consideration. It is argued that in Martenyi et al's study, both subject groups were initially treated with fluoxetine, but results of the placebo/placebo group are not included in the paper. The current author refers to a study by J. F. Rosenbaum et al (1998) which concluded that fluoxetine had fewer adverse events than other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. Agell contends that although Martenyi et al mention that the reason behind the failure to show significant differences in the improvement of symptoms between the 2 treatment groups is the result of inconsistent patient self rating. Agell questions whether it could simply be that there are no differences and suggests that the interpretation of the results could have been more rigorous. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2003 APA, all rights reserved)