Am J Psychiatry 1980; 137:1580-1582
Copyright © 1980 by American Psychiatric Association
Behavioral desensitization of phobic anxiety using thiopental sodium
T Pearlman
The author evaluated a random sample of 25 patients suffering from a
variety of phobic anxiety states who were treated with desensitization
using thiopental sodium combined with progressive reduction in the use of
oral anxiolytic medication. At 24-week follow-up, 11 of the patients
reported mild symptoms of phobic anxiety and 14 reported none; 9 of the
patients reported their use of tranquilizers had decreased and 15 reported
they had used non for at least 2 weeks. These results demonstrate the
usefulness of the treatment in producing sustained reduction of phobic
anxiety and tranquilizer use.
