This paper lays out the research methodology and outcomes of a study that involved female assault survivors who have PTSD, to compare the outcomes of several treatment options.
Ninety-six female assault victims with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were randomly assigned to four treatment conditions: prolonged exposure (PE), stress inoculation training (SIT), combined treatment (PE-SIT), or wait-list control (WL). Treatment consisted of nine twice-weekly, individual sessions. Independent evaluations were conducted at pre-treatment; post-treatment; and three-, six-, and 12-month follow-ups. All three active treatments reduced severity of PTSD and depression compared with WL but did not differ significantly from each other, and these gains were maintained throughout the follow-up period. However, in the intent-to-treat sample, PE was superior to SIT and PE-SIT on post-treatment anxiety and global social adjustment at follow-up and had larger effect sizes on PTSD severity, depression, and anxiety. SIT and PE-SIT did not differ significantly from each other on any outcome measure. Publisher Abstract Provided