With 106,593 reported rapes in the United States in 1991 and the number continually on the rise, rape victims may constitute the largest number of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) sufferers in the U.S., even outnumbering the estimated 830,000 Vietnam veterans with the disorder. PTSD is an anxiety disorder characterized by symptoms of re-experiencing of the trauma, emotional numbing and avoidance, and increased arousal. This study aims to evaluate the relative efficacy of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and prolonged exposure (PE), compared to a no-treatment wait-list control (WAIT) in the treatment of PTSD in adult female rape victims. EMDR has received initial support from several case reports and controlled preliminary studies, but no controlled studies have been conducted exclusively on PTSD rape victims, and none comparing it to the more established prolonged exposure. PE has been found effective in reducing PTSD symptoms across traumas. In this study, 75 subjects with PTSD will be randomly assigned to one of the three experimental conditions. All assessments will be conducted by an Independent Assessor blind to the treatment condition, and standard measures of PTSD will be incorporated. The primary goals of this study are to compare the relative efficacy of EMDR and PE, and compare them to the WAIT control group in treating PTSD in rape victims; to gather information on the differential rate of response to treatment; to develop predictors for response to treatment; and to gather information on the long-term response to treatment for six and twelve months following treatment. Long range goals include establishing effective and efficient treatments for chronic PTSD, and hopefully developing preventive measures to alleviate acute PTSD symptoms soon after trauma exposure.
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| Leiner, Amy S; Kearns, Megan C; Jackson, Joan L et al. (2012) Avoidant coping and treatment outcome in rape-related posttraumatic stress disorder. J Consult Clin Psychol 80:317-21 |
| Gerardi, Maryrose; Rothbaum, Barbara O; Astin, Millie C et al. (2010) Cortisol Response Following Exposure Treatment for PTSD in Rape Victims. J Aggress Maltreat Trauma 19:349-356 |
| Rothbaum, Barbara Olasov; Astin, Millie C; Marsteller, Fred (2005) Prolonged Exposure versus Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) for PTSD rape victims. J Trauma Stress 18:607-16 |
