title: An open trial and discontinuation study of fluoxetine in children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy and safety of fluoxetine for short-term and long-term treatment in children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Twenty-three children and adolescents (mean age 12.0, SD = 2.3) treated with fluoxetine for OCD with or without Gilles de la Tourette's syndrome were the subjects of this study. The design was an open-label trial for 20 weeks of fixed-dose fluoxetine (20 mg/day). OCD symptom severity was measured with the Maudsley OCD scale and with Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI). All of the patients were followed-up after discontinuation of the drug for 24 months. Patients with OCD showed a significant decrease in the severity of their OCD symptoms according to Maudsley OCD scores (p < 0.001) and CGI scores (p < 0.001). Fluoxetine was generally well tolerated, and side effects were relatively mild. Ten patients (43.5%) with OCD who responded to fluoxetine relapsed in the follow-up period, but responded well to fluoxetine. These results indicate that fluoxetine is effective and safe for short-term and long-term treatment of OCD in children and adolescents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Z B
authors.initials: ZB
authors.lastname: Semerci
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Unal
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002648:Child; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D005473:Fluoxetine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation; D005473:Fluoxetine; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors