Fluoxetine treatment for obsessive-compulsive disorder in children and adolescents: a placebo-controlled clinical trial

• Published in: Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Vol. 40; no. 7; p. 773
• Main Authors: Geller, D A, Hoog, S L, Heiligenstein, J H, Ricardi, R K, Tamura, R, Kluszynski, S, Jacobson, J G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01-07-2001
• Subjects: Adolescent; Analysis of Variance; Child; Consumer Product Safety; Double-Blind Method; Female; Fluoxetine - adverse effects; Fluoxetine - therapeutic use; Humans; Least-Squares Analysis; Male; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - drug therapy; Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors - adverse effects; Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors - therapeutic use; Severity of Illness Index
• ISSN: 0890-8567
• DOI: 10.1097/00004583-200107000-00011

This study assesses the efficacy and tolerability of fluoxetine in the acute treatment of child and adolescent obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) during a 13-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.
Eligible patients aged 7 to 17 (N = 103) were randomized at a ratio of 2:1 to receive either fluoxetine or placebo. Dosing was initiated at 10 mg daily for 2 weeks, then increased to 20 mg daily. After 4 weeks of treatment, and again after 7 weeks of treatment, non-responders could have their dosage increased by 20 mg daily, for a maximum possible dosage of 60 mg daily. Primary measure of efficacy was improvement in OCD symptoms as measured by the Children's Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (CY-BOCS). All analyses were intent-to-treat.
Fluoxetine was associated with significantly greater improvement in OCD as assessed by the CY-BOCS (p = .026) and other measures than was placebo. Fluoxetine was well tolerated and had a rate of discontinuation for adverse events similar to that of placebo (p = 1.00).
Fluoxetine 20 to 60 mg daily was effective and well tolerated for treatment of OCD in this pediatric population.