Psychopharmacological treatment in borderline personality disorder: A pilot observational study in a real-world setting

<p>Psychopharmacological treatment in borderline personality disorder: A<br> pilot observational study in a real-world setting</p> <p>Psychotherapy is the cornerstone of treatment for borderline personality disorder (BPD) while pharmacotherapy<br> should be considered only as an adjunctive intervention. In clinical practice, however, most of BPD patients only<br> receive medication. The aim of the study is to first describe pharmacological treatment in BPD patients in Italy<br> and secondly to evaluate if comorbidity or illness severity are associated with the prescription of different class<br> compounds.<br> Data on pharmacological treatment and clinical evaluation of 75 BPD patients were collected in 5 clinical<br> settings. The association between comorbidity and medication was assessed. Moreover, we evaluated the association<br> between pharmacotherapy and severity, defined by a cluster analysis aimed at detecting different groups<br> of patients.<br> Most of the participants (82.7%) were characterized by polypharmacy, with a mean of 2.4 medications per<br> person. Interestingly, the prescription didn&rsquo;t seem to depend on/be based on the severity of the disorder and was<br> only partially determined by the presence of comorbidity.<br> In conclusion, our findings are similar to what described in other clinical studies, supporting the idea that<br> medication management for BPD is only partially coherent with international guidelines. This pilot study confirms<br> the need for more rigorous studies to gain greater understanding of this topic and diminish the gap between<br> guidelines and the real clinical world.</p>