Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-2018
Keywords
comorbidity, RCT for posttraumatic stress disorder and substance use disorders, cross-lagged treatment effects, symptom changes during treatment, treatment matching
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000345
Abstract
Objective: To advance understanding of the effectiveness of evidence-based treatments for comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use disorder (SUD), research must provide a more nuanced picture of how substance use affects change in PTSD symptoms over the course of treatments and whether prolonged exposure techniques can be efficacious during active substance use. A data set that included patients with PTSD/subthreshold-PTSD and SUD treated with an exposure-based intervention provided an opportunity to conduct a secondary analysis to test how patients’ substance use impacted PTSD change over treatment. Method: We applied growth models to week-to-week PTSD symptom and substance use changes during treatment and follow-up of a randomized controlled trial of two cognitive–behavioral treatments for PTSD and SUD: Concurrent Treatment of PTSD and SUD Using Prolonged Exposure (COPE) and Relapse Prevention Therapy (RPT). Cross-lagged analyses were used to determine whether prior week substance use impacted subsequent PTSD symptom severity. Results: Both treatments evidenced significant reductions in PTSD symptom severity. In the context of continued substance use, results suggest that individuals still benefit from exposure-based treatment. Conclusion: Results provide evidence that RPT and COPE both led to significant reductions in PTSD, providing further support that exposure-based techniques tailored for SUD can be conducted without jeopardizing PTSD or SUD outcomes. Implications for clinical decision making around treatment selection are discussed.
Rights Information
Was this content written or created while at USF?
Yes
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, v. 86, issue 10, p. 810-819
©American Psychological Association, 2018. This paper is not the copy of record and may not exactly replicate the authoritative document published in the APA journal. Please do not copy or cite without author's permission. The final article is available, upon publication, at: https://doi.org/10.1037/ccp0000345
Scholar Commons Citation
Hien, Denise A.; Smith, Kathryn Z.; Owens, Max; Lopez-Castro, Teresa; Ruglass, Lesia M.; and Papini, Santiago, "Lagged Effects of Substance Use on PTSD Severity in a Randomized Controlled Trial with Modified Prolonged Exposure and Relapse Prevention" (2018). Psychology Faculty Publications. 2398.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/psy_facpub/2398
