Please login or create an account. If you do not have access to this content, you will be shown a 30 second preview and licensing options.
- Presentation
A Dermatologist’s Guide to Psychopharmacology: Practical Use of Anxiety, Depression, OCD, and Antipsychotic Medications
Description
The speaker argues that psychopharmacology is both legal and ethical for dermatologists to use, since many non-psychiatrists already prescribe these medications. Rather than reviewing the literature, the talk aims to give practical, easy-to-use guidance and emphasizes starting with low doses and titrating slowly to avoid side effects and build confidence. For acute anxiety, short-term benzodiazepines can be effective if used briefly and carefully; for chronic anxiety, buspirone is presented as a safe, nonaddictive, non-sedating option that requires time to work. Doxepin is highlighted as useful for anxiety, itching, and antihistamine effects, while paroxetine is favored for its usefulness across anxiety, depression, and OCD at different doses, with caution about sedation, GI effects, and especially slow tapering to avoid withdrawal. Hydroxyzine is described as an officially approved anti-anxiety medication that dermatologists already use under brand names. For antipsychotic use, pimozide and risperidone are mentioned as options for delusional or similar patients, again with low-and-slow dosing. Overall, the message is that dermatologists can comfortably and responsibly use a limited set of psychotropic medications for common psychodermatologic needs.
View moreConclusions
- The presentation concludes that dermatologists can legally and ethically use selected psychopharmacologic medications when this helps their patients.
- It argues that dermatologists should focus on learning a few well-chosen drugs in each category rather than trying to master every available psychotropic medication.
- For acute anxiety, short-term benzodiazepine use such as alprazolam or lorazepam can be effective if started at very low doses and carefully titrated.
- For chronic anxiety, non-addictive options such as buspirone, low-dose doxepin, paroxetine, and hydroxyzine are presented as practical choices.
- Low-dose doxepin is positioned as especially useful in dermatology because it can help anxiety, itching, and histamine-related symptoms.
- Paroxetine is presented as a versatile SSRI that can treat anxiety, depression, and OCD at different dose ranges, but it must be tapered slowly if stopped.
- For delusional or other psychotic-spectrum presentations in dermatology, pimozide and risperidone are described as useful low-dose options, with pimozide emphasized as particularly acceptable to some patients.
- The overarching prescribing principle is to start low, titrate slowly, and aim for symptom improvement without excessive sedation or other limiting side effects.
- Can pimozide kill parasites? Surprisingly, the most honest answer is ‘yes’. Journal of Dermatological Treatment.#10.1080/09546634.2025.2466635