Treatment of Anxiety Disorders

The chapter starts with an overview of the treatment of anxiety disorders in the fields of child and adolescent clinical psychology and psychiatry. Before reviewing what is known about the treatment of anxiety disorders in adolescence, the chapter first provides a brief overview of the history and rationale for cognitive behavioral therapy, pharmacotherapy, and their combination in the treatment of youth with anxiety disorders. The chapter concludes by stating that much more needs to be done to establish the efficacy and safety of medication augmentation for adolescents with anxiety disorders; clinically it is known that many are treated with this strategy, but the literature supporting this approach has yet to be developed.