According to a new pilot study conducted by researchers from the University of Washington, the University of Texas and the University of Pennsylvania, a new memory enhancing drug is being used to improve effectiveness of exposure therapy for suffers of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The theory behind exposure therapy is that if a patient recounts a fearful or traumatic event repeatedly, their memory of that event is changed and experienced in a different way, thus the memory doesn’t evoke the same emotions and symptoms of PTSD such as avoidance of event related objects and situations, flashbacks and nightmares. It is reported that around 65 percent of post-traumatic stress disorder patients who are treated with ten 90-minute exposure therapy sessions find that their PTSD symptoms relinquish.
The researchers combined their understanding of exposure therapy with a drug that is approved by the Food and Drugs Association (FDA) known as United States Pharmacopeia (USP) methylene blue. This compound has previously been found to aid fear extinction in rats, it is thought that it forces memory cells in the brain to remain active for prolonged periods of time there by speeding up the memory process.
It is predicted that PTSD suffers who are given an oral dosage of methylene blue immediately after an exposure therapy session are predicted to recover from PTSD faster. The results of this study are awaited with an air of apprehension and uncertainty over the response to this largely untested drug and somewhat less than convincing therapy.
