Three Prospective Case Studies Examining Mifepristone's Efficacy in Patients with Treatment-Resistant PTSD

Agnes Van Minnen*, Lizelotte Vos, Pierre M. Bet, Ad De Jongh, Felix Linsen, Hein J.F. Van Marle, Onno C. Meijer, Willem M. Otte, Marije Russcher, Christiaan H. Vinkers

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Despite the availability of various treatment approaches for patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), some patients do not respond to these therapies, and novel treatment approaches are needed. This study investigated the efficacy of mifepristone, a glucocorticoid receptor antagonist, in treatment-resistant PTSD patients. Three patients with PTSD who were resistant to standard psychological and pharmacological treatments were prescribed mifepristone (600-1,200 mg/day) for 1 week. A baseline-controlled single-case design was used, involving a 2-week baseline phase (no intervention), a 1-week intervention phase (mifepristone), and a 2-week postintervention phase. The primary outcome measure, self-reported PTSD symptom severity (PCL-5), was assessed daily, with participants providing their own control condition. Two of the three patients experienced a significant reduction in PTSD symptom severity after the intervention phase and no longer met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD. These positive results were maintained during long-term follow-up. These findings support the potential effectiveness of mifepristone in the treatment of patients with treatment-resistant PTSD. However, our findings must be interpreted with caution, and further studies with larger sample sizes and more rigorous designs are necessary to confirm the promising results.

Original languageEnglish
Article number4768647
Pages (from-to)1-6
Number of pages6
JournalCase Reports in Psychiatry
Volume2024
Early online date26 Apr 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Agnes van Minnen et al.

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