Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

To advance the neurobiology and treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) by focusing on Tourette's Syndrome (TS)-spectrum OCD as a possible homogeneous form of OCD, and investigating the relevance of intact 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) function to the mechanism of anti-OC drug action. The validity of TS-spectrum OCD as a distinct subtype is assessed using a detailed clinical, family, drug treatment response profile in adult OCD patients. In Study I, patients are divided prospectively into 2 putative subtypes (TS-spectrum and non-TS-spectrum OCD) on the basis of clinical history and direct, structured interviews of family members (approximately 400 interviews). In Study II, patients enter an 8-week single-blind trial with the potent and selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine (FX). Patients with an incomplete response to FX alone (approximately 64 patients) are randomized to a 4-week double-blind trial of FX in combination with the dopamine (DA) 2 antagonist olanzapine (OLA) or placebo (PLA).

Inclusion criteria required that subjects, ages 14-70 years, have at least a 1-year duration of a current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV (DSM-IV) principal diagnosis of OCD. Furthermore, the OCD had to be defined by a rating of "moderate" or greater on the global severity item of the Clinical Global Impressions (CGI) scale and have a Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) score of 19 or greater. Exclusion criteria included primary depression, schizophrenia, or other psychotic disorders; active bipolar disorder; abuse of alcohol or other significant substance within 6 months; increased risk of seizures or history of neurosurgery, encephalitis, or significant head trauma; or a significant medical condition, such as heart, liver, or renal disease. Subjects with an intelligence quotient of less than 80 as determined with the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test (Kaufman and Kaufman 1990) were excluded.