THE USE OF PSYCHOTROPIC DRUGS IN THE REHABILITATION OF SEX-DEVIATED CRIMINALS

Combinations of 25 mg. or 10 mg. amitriptyline and 4, 2, or 1 mg. perphenazine, 3 or 4 times daily, were administered to 40 hospitalized adult males with sociopathic personality characterized by sexual deviation. The treatment period ranged between one and 5 months. These patients also received group psychotherapy.

Results of treatment were graded as satisfactory in 15 patients who can now be considered for release, promising in 16 patients who were greatly improved but who require additional hospitalization, and unsatisfactory in 9 patients who showed no appreciable change. Mild side effects occurred in most patients during the first few days of treatment but these usually disappeared spontaneously without reduction of dosage. Laboratory studies revealed no variations from the pretreatment values.

This combination of an antidepressant and a tranquilizer was of considerable value in the treatment of agitated depression, anxiety, and aggressiveness in severely neurotic patients. The drugs enabled these patients to function better within the hospital community and to become more accessible to psychotherapy which offers the only hope of permanent cure.