Treatment and management of personality disorder

Author(s):  
Giles Newton-Howes ◽  
Roger Mulder

The management of personality disorders remains a complex and challenging area, in which significant advances have been made to our understanding over the last two decades. As an increasing understanding of the diagnosis of personality disorder is recognized, our ability to understand what interventions could be of value continues to develop. The diagnosis of borderline personality disorder is where the most significant understanding has occurred. It is now clear that these disorders can be recognized early in development and treatment should be primarily psychological. Cognitive, dynamic, and educational approaches have been trialled and found to be effective. Further, pharmacotherapy is best considered for short-term, symptom-focused use, as opposed to long-term therapy. The evidence suggests dopamine antagonists and mood stabilizers are the drugs of choice. Identifying the needs and developing strategies to meet these provide greater benefit than focusing on risk.

Author(s):  
M. Mercedes Perez-Rodriguez ◽  
Larry J. Siever

Despite the lack of approval by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration, drugs are used widely to treat personality disorders, particularly borderline personality disorder, based on their effects known from clinical trials in other psychiatric disorders (off-label use). The role of medications in personality disorders is limited to moderate effects on some but not all of the symptom domains. There are no medications available that improve the global severity of any personality disorder as a whole. In borderline personality disorder, evidence is strongest for second-generation antipsychotics and mood stabilizers, while dietary supplements like omega-3 fatty acids hold some promise. However, medications have limited effectiveness and are still viewed as adjunctive to other forms of treatment, particularly psychotherapy.


Trials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Juul ◽  
Sebastian Simonsen ◽  
Stig Poulsen ◽  
Susanne Lunn ◽  
Per Sørensen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Psychotherapy for borderline personality disorder is often extensive and resource-intensive. Mentalisation-based therapy is a psychodynamically oriented treatment option for borderline personality disorder, which includes a case formulation, psychoeducation, and group and individual therapy. The evidence on short-term compared with long-term mentalisation-based therapy is currently unknown. Methods/design The Short-Term MBT Project (MBT-RCT) is a single-centre, parallel-group, investigator-initiated, randomised clinical superiority trial in which short-term (20 weeks) will be compared with long-term (14 months) mentalisation-based therapy for outpatients with subthreshold or diagnosed borderline personality disorder. Outcome assessors, data managers, the data safety and monitoring committee, statisticians, and decision-makers will be blinded to treatment allocation. Participants will be assessed before randomisation and at 8, 16, and 24 months after randomisation. The primary outcome will be the severity of borderline symptomatology assessed with the Zanarini Rating Scale for Borderline Personality Disorder. Secondary outcomes will be functional impairment (Work and Social Adjustment Scale), quality of life (Short-Form Health Survey 36—mental component), global functioning (Global Assessment of Functioning), and proportion of participants with severe self-harm. In this paper, we present a detailed statistical analysis plan including a comprehensive explanation of the planned statistical analyses, methods to handle missing data, and assessments of the underlying statistical assumptions. Final statistical analyses will be conducted independently by two statisticians following the present plan. Discussion We have developed this statistical analysis plan before unblinding of the trial results in line with the Declaration of Helsinki and the International Conference on Harmonization of Good Clinical Practice Guidelines, which should increase the validity of the MBT-RCT trial by mitigation of analysis bias. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03677037. Registered on 19 September 2018


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Timäus ◽  
Miriam Meiser ◽  
Borwin Bandelow ◽  
Kirsten R. Engel ◽  
Anne M. Paschke ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The purpose of this study was to assess the pharmacological treatment strategies of inpatients with borderline personality disorder between 2008 and 2012. Additionally, we compared pharmacotherapy during this period to a previous one (1996 to 2004). Methods Charts of 87 patients with the main diagnosis of borderline personality disorder receiving inpatient treatment in the University Medical Center of Goettingen, Germany, between 2008 and 2012 were evaluated retrospectively. For each inpatient treatment, psychotropic drug therapy including admission and discharge medication was documented. We compared the prescription rates of the interval 2008–2012 with the interval 1996–2004. Results 94% of all inpatients of the interval 2008–2012 were treated with at least one psychotropic drug at time of discharge. All classes of psychotropic drugs were applied. We found high prescription rates of naltrexone (35.6%), quetiapine (19.5%), mirtazapine (18.4%), sertraline (12.6%), and escitalopram (11.5%). Compared to 1996–2004, rates of low-potency antipsychotics, tri−/tetracyclic antidepressants and mood stabilizers significantly decreased while usage of naltrexone significantly increased. Conclusions In inpatient settings, pharmacotherapy is still highly prevalent in the management of BPD. Prescription strategies changed between 1996 and 2012. Quetiapine was preferred, older antidepressants and low-potency antipsychotics were avoided. Opioid antagonists are increasingly used and should be considered for further investigation.


Author(s):  
Shaunak Ajit Ajinkya ◽  
Pranita Shantanu Sharma ◽  
Aparna Ramakrishnan

Introduction: Personality disorders are a group of behavioural patterns associated with significant personal and socio-occupational disturbances. Numerous studies have demonstrated borderline personality to be one of the most common personality disorders. It’s less often diagnosed with just a clinical assessment. Aim: To examine the proportion of patients with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), and its associated personality types and clinical syndromes, using the Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory version-III (MCMI-III). Materials and Methods: A retrospective observational study was carried out on 450 adult patients who attended the psychiatry outpatient department of an urban tertiary care hospital. They had been administered the MCMI-III, a self-rating questionnaire commonly used to provide information on personality types and associated clinical syndromes. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (IBM SPSS, Windows) version 20.0 was used for statistical analyses. Data was expressed in terms of actual number, mean and percentages. Chi-Square or Fisher’s-exact test, as appropriate, was used for categorical data to test for associations. Odds ratio was estimated to measure strength of the association. Results: Borderline was the most common personality type comprising nearly half (46.63%) of the study population. 25.5% had borderline traits while 21.1% had Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). BPD was significantly higher in females (p<0.001), younger age group below the age of 40 years (p<0.001) and unmarried persons (p<0.001). It was comorbid most with Anxiety (90.91%; OR=4.05; p<0.001), Major Depression (85.23%; OR=18.39; p<0.001), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (46.59%; OR=6.30; p<0.001) and Thought disorders (56.82%; OR=18.15; p<0.001). Alcohol (22.73%; OR=3.54; p<0.001) and Drug dependence (13.64%; OR=11.52; p<0.001) were also seen significantly higher in patients with BPD. Personality types significantly comorbid with BPD were Sadistic, Depressive, Masochistic, Negativistic, Schizotypal, Avoidant, Dependent, Antisocial and Paranoid types, with odds being most for Sadistic personality (OR=9.44). Conclusion: It is recommended that mental health professionals and clinicians should start to look for underlying symptoms of BPD in patients of anxiety and mood syndromes. If found these patients should be directed for psychotherapy as early as possible. The MCMI psychological test would be an important contribution to this area, given the need for systematic, quick, and objective testing methods that facilitate the diagnosis.


BJPsych Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S122-S122
Author(s):  
Nyakomi Adwok ◽  
Sharon Nightingale

AimsThe overarching aim of the session was to address and reduce stigma around Borderline Personality Disorder among doctors. The three main objectives were:To increase empathy and understanding around Borderline Personality Disorder by exposing junior doctors to service user perspectives outside a clinical setting;To address knowledge gaps identified by junior doctors in a self-reported questionnaire disseminated prior to the teaching session;To offer junior doctors a basic psychological framework to base their assessment and formulation of service users with personality disorders.Background‘Borderline Personality Disorder: The Person Behind the Label’ was the title of the first co-produced teaching session in the Leeds and York Partnership Foundation Trust (LYPFT). Prior to the teaching session, an online questionnaire was sent out to trainees. The results highlighted three key issues:Negative attitudes towards service users with personality disorders;Poor subjective knowledge of the psychological models of personality disorders;Perception among trainees that they do not receive adequate training to deal with the challenges service users with personality disorders present.MethodA teaching session was co-produced by a team of two service users, a principal clinical psychologist within the Leeds Personality Disorder Network (PDN) and a core Psychiatry trainee. It was delivered in a 75 minute session to 40 attendees consisting of both trainee doctors and consultants.ResultFeedback was collected immediately after the session through the use of anonymous feedback forms. The response to the training was overwhelmingly positive with all 28 respondents rating the session as 4/5 or 5/5 on a satisfaction scale ranging from 1 (poor) to excellent (5). Key themes from the feedback included appreciation for the service user perspective and teaching on psychological theory. The fourth question in the questionnaire: “How will this teaching impact your work?” produced the highest number of responses (25/28) and provided evidence that the above listed objectives of the session were met.ConclusionCo-produced teaching has great potential to address negative attitudes around highly stigmatised conditions by bridging the gap that often exists between service users and mental health professionals.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 94 (5) ◽  
pp. 724-731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brigitta U. Mueller ◽  
Karina M. Butler ◽  
Vicki L. Stocker ◽  
Frank M. Balis ◽  
Philip A. Pizzo ◽  
...  

Background. Didanosine has demonstrated promising antiviral activity and a tolerable toxicity profile in short term studies. We describe a cohort of HIV-infected children who were treated for a prolonged period of time with didanosine. Methods. Children (6 months to 18 years of age) with symptomatic HIV infection or an absolute CD4 count &lt; 0.5 x 109 cells/L, received oral didanosine at doses between 20 mg/m2 to 180 mg/m2 every 8 hours. Clinical, immunological, and virological parameters were assessed at least every 2 months. The pharmacokinetics of didanosine were evaluated in 85 patients. Results. Previously untreated children (n = 51) and children who had received prior antiretroviral therapy (n = 52) were enrolled in the study (median time on study 22.6 months; range 2 to 48). The long-term administration of didanosine was well tolerated and no new toxicities were observed. The absolute CD4 count increased by ≥ .05 x 109 cells/L in 28 of 87 (32%) of patients after 6 months of therapy. Responses were also sustained in 41% of these children after 3 years of therapy. Children entering the study with a CD4 count &gt;0.1 x 109 cells/L (n = 51) had a marked survival advantage (P = .00002) with an estimated survival probability after 3 years of 80% compared to 39% for children with lower CD4 counts. Although the area under the curve of didanosine increased proportionally with the dose, there was considerable interpatient variability at each dose level. There was no apparent relationship between surrogate markers of clinical outcome and plasma drug concentration. Conclusions. Didanosine was well tolerated with chronic administration, and toxicities were uncommon and usually reversible. In 41% of patients, the CD4 count increased and was maintained at the higher level even after years of treatment.


2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yosefa A. Ehrlich ◽  
Amir Garakani ◽  
Stephanie R Pavlos ◽  
Larry Siever

Personality can be defined as an organizational system of self that shapes the manner in which a person interacts with his or her environment. Personality traits develop in adolescence or early adulthood and are thought to be shaped by early childhood experiences and enduring throughout a lifetime. Personality traits that prevent an individual from being able to function in society or that cause significant distress are diagnosed as personality disorders. A thorough history is needed to rule out other psychiatric and medical disorders. This chapter reviews the diagnostic criteria, differential diagnosis, comorbidity, prevalence, etiology (including genetics and neurobiology), prognosis, and treatment of paranoid, schizoid, schizotypal, borderline, antisocial, narcissistic, histrionic, avoidant, obsessive-compulsive, and dependent personality disorders. A discussion of the relevance of personality disorders to primary care practices and approaches to managing such patients is also included. Tables describe the diagnostic criteria of each personality disorder. Figures illustrate the prevalence of personality disorders in the general and psychiatric populations; schizotypal personality disorder in the community, general population, and clinical population; childhood trauma in individuals with personality disorder; and comorbid disorders in individuals with borderline personality disorder. A model of brain processing in borderline personality disorder is also featured. This chapter contains 5 highly rendered figures, 10 tables, 230 references, and 5 MCQs.


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