Double Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Trial of Paliperidone Addition in SRI-Resistant Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Study Summary

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common, chronic, and oftentimes disabling disorder. The only established treatments for OCD are a specific form of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and the Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor medications (SRIs). Few patients with OCD experience complete symptom resolution with either modality and even after two consecutive SRI trials, as many as 30%-40% of patients fail to derive a satisfactory response. Pharmacological options for these SRI-resistant cases include switching to a different antidepressant, increasing the dose of SRI, or augmentation with another agent. Previous studies showed that approximately 33-50% of OCD patients who have not had an adequate response to SRI medication had a positive response when an atypical antipsychotic medication was added. However, the problematic acute and long-term side effects of these medications are of concern and, at times, limit their use. Paliperidone has a number of advantages over these medications including fewer drug interactions and better tolerability. Thus, this study is designed to determine whether paliperidone augmentation of an existing medication is effective relative to taking a placebo and your existing medication.

Primary Outcome

This measure assesses obsessive-compulsive symptom severity across 10 items that are completed during an interview format with the person with OCD. These 10 items are summed to derive a total score, which ranges from 0-40 \[Scale range: 0 (Minimum) - 40 (Maximum)\] with higher scores corresponding to more severe obsessive-compulsive symptoms.

Conditions Studied

Interventions

• DRUG Placebo
• DRUG Paliperidone

Study Locations (2)