Clinical Use of Prazosin in a Patient With Acute Stress Disorder: A Case Report

Prazosin is an alpha-1 blocker that is commonly given to patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to reduce nightmares and flashbacks. Its use in acute stress disorder (ASD), however, has not been well characterized. There is a moderately positive correlation between ASD and the subsequent...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of psychiatric practice Vol. 26; no. 3; p. 246
Main Authors Srivastava, Anshuman A, Opler, Douglas J
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.05.2020
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Summary:Prazosin is an alpha-1 blocker that is commonly given to patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to reduce nightmares and flashbacks. Its use in acute stress disorder (ASD), however, has not been well characterized. There is a moderately positive correlation between ASD and the subsequent development of PTSD, which indicates that there may be some common neurobiological mechanisms that connect the 2 conditions. We present the case of a 51-year-old man who was experiencing symptoms of ASD following a motor vehicle accident that occurred a few days earlier. He was reporting flashbacks and nightmares of the accident, but after being treated with prazosin, his symptoms completely resolved. Prazosin may be effective in treating the symptoms of ASD and, by doing this, it may also play a role in inhibiting the progression of ASD to PTSD.
ISSN:1538-1145
DOI:10.1097/PRA.0000000000000468