No Improvement of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms With Guanfacine Treatment
Abstract
Objective: The authors report an 8-week, double-blind, randomized controlled trial of guanfacine versus placebo for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Method: Veterans with chronic PTSD who were medication-free or receiving stable pharmacotherapy were randomly assigned to guanfacine (N=29) versus placebo (N=34). Results: Guanfacine had no effect on PTSD symptoms, subjective sleep quality, or general mood disturbances. Guanfacine was associated with a number of side effects. Conclusions: These results do not support the use of alpha 2 agonists in veterans with chronic PTSD.