Benzodiazepines and Anticonvulsants for Social Phobia (Social Anxiety Disorder)
James W. Jefferson
J Clin Psychiatry 2001;62(suppl 1):50-53
© Copyright 2015 Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.
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Both benzodiazepines and conventional anticonvulsants have been evaluated as treatments for social
phobia (social anxiety disorder). Among the benzodiazepines, clonazepam is the best studied, although
there is reason to expect that all benzodiazepine anxiolytics would be effective for this condition.
Among the anticonvulsants, gabapentin and pregabalin, an analogue of γ-aminobutyric acid
(GABA), have been shown to be more effective than placebo in double-blind studies. Other than a
small negative open study of valproic acid for social phobia, there is a paucity of information on
whether other anticonvulsants might be useful for this condition.