Back to Search
Start Over
An open-label trial of risperidone augmentation for refractory anxiety disorders
- Source :
- The Journal of clinical psychiatry. 67(3)
- Publication Year :
- 2006
-
Abstract
- Background There is a paucity of data to support "next-step" treatments for the many patients with anxiety disorders who remain symptomatic after initial pharmacotherapy. Method Thirty patients with a primary diagnosis of an anxiety disorder-panic disorder (PD), social anxiety disorder (SAD), or generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)-refractory to initial pharmacotherapy with an adequate (or maximally tolerated) antidepressant and/or benzodiazepine trial of at least 8 weeks' duration prior to study initiation received open-label augmentation with flexibly dosed risperidone for 8 weeks. Participants were diagnosed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV. Results Risperidone augmentation at a mean +/- SD dose of 1.12 +/- 0.68 mg/day (range, 0.25-3.00 mg/day) resulted in a significant reduction in anxiety symptoms across disorders as measured by the Clinical Global Impressions-Severity of Illness scale and Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (HAM-A) scores and for each disorder-specific primary outcome measure-the Panic Disorder Severity Scale, the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, and HAM-A-in the intent-to-treat sample. Seventy percent (21/30) of participants completed the 8-week trial, with premature discontinuation due primarily to sedation and weight gain. Conclusions Although conclusions are limited by the open-label, relatively brief nature of this trial, our data suggest that augmentation with low-dose risperidone may be a useful option for patients with PD, SAD, or GAD refractory to adequate initial intervention with antidepressants and/or benzodiazepines. Longer-term, controlled safety and efficacy data are needed to understand the place of risperidone augmentation in the algorithm of treatment options for refractory anxiety disorders.
- Subjects :
- Adult
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Pediatrics
Generalized anxiety disorder
medicine.drug_class
Drug Resistance
Atypical antipsychotic
Liebowitz social anxiety scale
Severity of Illness Index
Drug Administration Schedule
Benzodiazepines
medicine
Ambulatory Care
Humans
Psychiatry
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
Risperidone
Social anxiety
Panic Disorder Severity Scale
medicine.disease
Anxiety Disorders
Antidepressive Agents
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
Psychiatry and Mental health
Treatment Outcome
Phobic Disorders
Anxiety
Panic Disorder
Drug Therapy, Combination
Female
medicine.symptom
Psychology
Anxiety disorder
medicine.drug
Antipsychotic Agents
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 01606689
- Volume :
- 67
- Issue :
- 3
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- The Journal of clinical psychiatry
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....912917c6a213320ccf271ce3d59b3f9d