Post-traumatic stress disorder (NICE guideline NG116)

NG116 puts trauma-focused psychological therapy first and drug treatment a distant second: trauma-focused CBT — cognitive processing therapy, cognitive therapy for PTSD, prolonged exposure — is the primary offer for adults, with EMDR as an alternative for non-combat trauma. It explicitly recommends against debriefing after a traumatic event and reserves antidepressants for people who decline or do not respond to psychological therapy. The register trials below are grouped by therapeutic modality; the 2022 head-to-head of CPT and prolonged exposure postdates the guideline.

This guideline cites 5 of the 62 landmark trials in our Psychiatry & psychotherapy register.

Source

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Post-traumatic stress disorder. NICE guideline [NG116]. Published 5 December 2018; last reviewed 8 April 2025.