Propranolol and the prevention of post-traumatic stress disorder: is it wrong to erase the "sting" of bad memories?
Am J Bioeth
; 7(9): 12-20, 2007 Sep.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-17849331
ABSTRACT
The National Institute of Mental Health (Bethesda, MD) reports that approximately 5.2 million Americans experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) each year. PTSD can be severely debilitating and diminish quality of life for patients and those who care for them. Studies have indicated that propranolol, a beta-blocker, reduces consolidation of emotional memory. When administered immediately after a psychic trauma, it is efficacious as a prophylactic for PTSD. Use of such memory-altering drugs raises important ethical concerns, including some futuristic dystopias put forth by the President's Council on Bioethics. We think that adequate informed consent should facilitate ethical research using propranolol and, if it proves efficacious, routine treatment. Clinical evidence from studies should certainly continue to evaluate realistic concerns about possible ill effects of diminishing memory. If memory-attenuating drugs prove effective, we believe that the most immediate social concern is the over-medicalization of bad memories, and its subsequent exploitation by the pharmaceutical industry.
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Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Propranolol
/
Transtornos de Estresse Pós-Traumáticos
/
Antagonistas Adrenérgicos beta
/
Temas Bioéticos
/
Memória
Limite:
Humans
País/Região como assunto:
America do norte
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Am J Bioeth
Assunto da revista:
ETICA
Ano de publicação:
2007
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos