Treatment of acute posttraumatic stress disorder in rape victims: An experimental study

Tested the comparative effectiveness of 2 therapeutic modalities of 5 1-hr sessions: (1) cognitive restructuring and specific coping-skills training and (2) progressive relaxation training in the treatment of acute posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in 20 victims (mean age 22 yrs) of sexual aggression. A 2-group experimental design with repeated measures (pretreatment, posttreatment, and 1-, 3-, 6-, and 12-mo follow-up) was used. Most treated Ss improved in all measures immediately upon posttreatment and in follow-up. There were no differences between the 2 modalities in the posttreatment. However, in the 12-mo follow-up the first group produced superior outcome in PTSD symptoms, but not in other measures.