Concomitant Psychotropic Medication Is Associated with Reduced Outcomes of Trauma-Focused Psychotherapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Psychotropic medications are frequently prescribed alongside trauma-focused psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), yet their impact on treatment response remains uncertain. This study emulated target trials to examine the association between psychotropic co-medication at treatment onset and psychotherapy outcomes in a real-world PTSD cohort.

Methods

A prospective cohort of 6,125 adults with chronic or delayed-onset PTSD received a standardized 2-8 day trauma-focused psychotherapy program, including daily prolonged exposure and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, at a Dutch psychotrauma center (2021-2024). Target trial emulation with double machine learning with inverse probability of treatment weighting estimated the e

SUBMITTER: Steenen SA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12707873 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature