Borderline personality disorder: what do we know about the possibilities of pharmacotherapy? Literature review and case study

Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a specific personality disorder characterized by emotional instability, intense anger that can be difficult to control, impulsivity, intensive and unstable relationships, distorted self-image, chronic feelings of emptiness, self-destructive and suicidal tendencies and transient, stress-related paranoid ideation or severe dissociative symptoms It affects 1.6% of the general population, 10% of the psychiatric outpatient population, and 20% of the psychiatric inpatient population. Psychotherapy is the first-line treatment; however, as some symptoms can hamper everyday functioning of patients, the use of pharmacotherapeutic treatment could be necessary. Meta-analyses of available pharmacological interventions demonstrate that antidepressants are not effective in reducing BPD symptoms, while the use of some antipsychotics and mood stabilizers can be beneficial. The authors presented the case of a 25-year-old patient with BPD who was successfully treated with a low dose of oxcarbazepine