Methylphenidate-induced obsessive-compulsive symptoms in an elderly man.
An 82-year-old man with treatment-resistant depression and early Alzheimer's disease was started on methylphenidate. Significant obsessive-compulsive behavior ensued but diminished over several weeks when methylphenidate was replaced by fluvoxamine. The patient had no prior psychiatric history, but he had a sister with obsessive-compulsive disorder. It appears that methylphenidate precipitated the patient's pathological behavior.
Serby
Michael
M
Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Medical Center, and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, New York 10003, USA. mserby@bethisraelny.org
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation / Q000008:administration & dosage; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D002065:Buspirone / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D016666:Fluvoxamine / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008774:Methylphenidate / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy
D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D008774:Methylphenidate; D016666:Fluvoxamine; D002065:Buspirone