THE AMYTAL INTERVIEW IN THE TREATMENT OF CONVERSION DISORDER - 3 CASE-REPORTS

The records of three consecutive patients who had a diagnosis of conve rsion disorder and received an amytal interview were reviewed. All dia gnoses were made according to DSM-III-R criteria by a staff psychiatri st. Amytal was administered according to a previously published protoc ol. All patients were contacted 1 year following their hospital discha rge. All patients tolerated the amytal interview without complications . The conversion symptoms in all patients remitted within several days of the interview and had not recurred at 1 year follow-up. In properl y selected patients, the use of the amytal interview may be a safe, ra pid, and efficacious intervention that can facilitate the resolution o f conversion symptoms in the military setting.