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The study of the effect of naltrexone on reduction of severity of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
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Aram Hamidi   , Mahboobeh Dadfar , Bijan Jahangiry , Mehdi Nasr Esfahani , Fereshteh Dadfar |
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Abstract: (14364 Views) |
| Background and Aim: In spite of new medications, there is no effective treatment for OCD patients. At the present time strong association between OCD and the range of bipolar disorders is more evident. In these patients, the change of mood and the appearance of the fast mood cycles during medical therapy with antidepressants is a real hazard. In this view, medical therapy with anti OCD which is not accompanied by antidepressants, is of considerable theoretical and clinical value. This research deals with the assessment of the effect of naltrexone on OCD.
Materials and Methods: This study included 23 patients with OCD who had received clomipramine, fluextine or a combination of both for at least 3 months. Continuing these drugs with the same doses, naltrexone 25-100 mg/day was also started for the patients. Lack of response and unbearable drug side effects occurred in 3 and 4 patients respectively, leading to deletion of these patients from the study. Ultimately 16 patients (9 women and 7 men) took part in this study actively. All the patients were assessed by means of YBOCS before and after treatment. The data were analyzed by Wilcoxon, Kolomogrov-Smirnov and T tests.
Results: The grades of minor criteria for obsession, compulsion and total of YBOCS were decreased significantly after treatment and also the severity of OCD reduced. 2 patients remained free of symptoms of OCD for more than 6 months after stopping Naltrexone and the other medications. In this study, OCD was most commonly associated with bipolar disorders.
Conclusion: Regarding the small sample size and the openness of the question, the validity of these results is limited, but it appears that Naltrexone is at least effective on some subgroups of OCD especially those associated with bipolar disorders. The study of long term effects of Naltrexone after the termination of treatment is recommended in the future. |
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| Keywords: Naltrexone, Obsessive-compulsive disorder, Treatment, Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) |
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Full-Text [PDF 163 kb]
(1715 Downloads)
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Type of Study: Original Research |
Subject:
General
Received: 2009/05/13 | Published: 2006/09/15
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