title: Effects of imipramine on depression and obsessive-compulsive symptoms.
abstract: Most of the controlled studies on the efficacy of medical treatments of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have involved clomipramine, a tricyclic antidepressant reputed to have anti-obsessional properties. To test the possibility that the drug's antidepressant action mediates the reduction of obsessive-compulsive symptoms, we treated 37 OCD patients with imipramine (mean dose = 233 mg/day) or placebo for 6 weeks and assessed improvement on both obsessive-compulsive and depressive symptoms. Imipramine reduced depression in highly depressed OCD patients, but did not affect obsessive-compulsive symptoms in these or in less depressed patients.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002997:Clomipramine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007099:Imipramine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D010919:Placebos
chemical_list: D010919:Placebos; D002997:Clomipramine; D007099:Imipramine