Preliminary results from a double blind study, comparing the effects of fluoxetine with placebo in a carefully selected group of 56 perpetrators of domestic violence, show that both the abstinence from alcohol and the administration of fluoxetine decrease the likelihood that perpetrators will be aggressive. Final analyses of the results will be performed after approximately 60 participants have completed the study. It is hoped that the results from our study will lead to new forms of treatment for domestic violence. Preliminary results of a collaborative study with NIMH using PET imaging show that perpetrators of domestic violence have an increased number of serotonin transporter sites when compared to healthy controls. This finding provides a possible explanation for why perpetrators have an increased sensitivity to fear-related stimuli.
| Salloum, Jasmin B; Ramchandani, Vijay A; Bodurka, Jerzy et al. (2007) Blunted rostral anterior cingulate response during a simplified decoding task of negative emotional facial expressions in alcoholic patients. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 31:1490-504 |
| Hibbeln, Joseph R; Bissette, Garth; Umhau, John C et al. (2004) Omega-3 status and cerebrospinal fluid corticotrophin releasing hormone in perpetrators of domestic violence. Biol Psychiatry 56:895-7 |
