Publication:

Treatment options for the specific phobias

Specific phobias are among the most common psychological problems both in men and women. For treatment of specific phobias, exposure-based therapy is the first choice followed by cognitive therapy, relaxation techniques and short-term pharmacotherapy. Long-term pharmacotherapy for specific phobias, is associated with adverse drug reactions and drug abuse, thus not a reasonable choice for long-term symptom control. Glucocorticoids and d-cycloserine (DCS) cause fear reduction when used in combination with exposure based therapy. Being a non-anxiolytic DCS accelerates fear reduction during exposure by facilitating memory consolidation during post-treatment phase. Adjuvant cortisol to exposure therapy also caused great reduction in fear in spider phobia.