David Baxter PhD
Late Founder
Quetiapine Monotherapy Provides Benefit for Patients With Chronic Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: Presented at ADAA
By Mary Beth Nierengarten
March 16, 2009
SANTA ANA PUEBLO, NM -- Monotherapy with quetiapine may provide benefit to patients with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), researchers reported here at the Anxiety Disorders Association of America (ADAA) 29th Annual Conference.
Lead investigator Mark Hamner, MD, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Charleston, South Carolina, presented a proof-of-concept study here on March 13, emphasising the need for better drugs to treat PTSD.
In his study, prior to randomisation, 80 patients with chronic PTSD participated in a placebo phase for 1 week. Dr. Hamner and colleagues then randomised the subjects in a double-blind fashion to 12 weeks of quetiapine monotherapy (n = 42) or placebo (n = 38) to evaluate the efficacy of quetiapine monotherapy to treat PTSD. Patients treated with quetiapine monotherapy received an average dose of 258 mg/day (range of 50 to 800 mg/day).
The investigators used the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) to measure primary outcome. The study found a 3-fold greater improvement in CAPS global scores in patients treated with quetiapine versus placebo (P = .007), based on an intent-to-treat analysis of 77 patients who had at least 1 efficacy-assessment visit.
Significant improvements also were seen in secondary outcome measures for quetiapine-treated patients versus placebo, including the CAPS Re-experiencing subscale (P = .0019) and Hyperarousal subscale (P = .03), Clinical Global Impressions (CGI)-Improvement scale (P = .03), CGI-Severity of Illness scale (P = .003), Positive and Negative Symptom Scale composite scores (P = .0135), and general psychopathology scores (P = .02), and the Hamilton Rating Scales for Depression and for Anxiety (P = .0093 and P = .02, respectively).
Adverse events with quetiapine were generally mild and were consistent with those generally seen with this drug. The more frequently reported adverse events were dry mouth (15.8%), somnolence (13.4%), and sedation (7.4%).
"I don't consider [quetiapine] a first-line drug, but it may play a role in refractory PTSD," Dr. Hamner concluded, adding that the next step is to test the drug in a larger, multicentre study.
Presentation title: Quetiapine Monotherapy in Chronic Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial. (Poster 119)
By Mary Beth Nierengarten
March 16, 2009
SANTA ANA PUEBLO, NM -- Monotherapy with quetiapine may provide benefit to patients with chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), researchers reported here at the Anxiety Disorders Association of America (ADAA) 29th Annual Conference.
Lead investigator Mark Hamner, MD, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Charleston, South Carolina, presented a proof-of-concept study here on March 13, emphasising the need for better drugs to treat PTSD.
In his study, prior to randomisation, 80 patients with chronic PTSD participated in a placebo phase for 1 week. Dr. Hamner and colleagues then randomised the subjects in a double-blind fashion to 12 weeks of quetiapine monotherapy (n = 42) or placebo (n = 38) to evaluate the efficacy of quetiapine monotherapy to treat PTSD. Patients treated with quetiapine monotherapy received an average dose of 258 mg/day (range of 50 to 800 mg/day).
The investigators used the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) to measure primary outcome. The study found a 3-fold greater improvement in CAPS global scores in patients treated with quetiapine versus placebo (P = .007), based on an intent-to-treat analysis of 77 patients who had at least 1 efficacy-assessment visit.
Significant improvements also were seen in secondary outcome measures for quetiapine-treated patients versus placebo, including the CAPS Re-experiencing subscale (P = .0019) and Hyperarousal subscale (P = .03), Clinical Global Impressions (CGI)-Improvement scale (P = .03), CGI-Severity of Illness scale (P = .003), Positive and Negative Symptom Scale composite scores (P = .0135), and general psychopathology scores (P = .02), and the Hamilton Rating Scales for Depression and for Anxiety (P = .0093 and P = .02, respectively).
Adverse events with quetiapine were generally mild and were consistent with those generally seen with this drug. The more frequently reported adverse events were dry mouth (15.8%), somnolence (13.4%), and sedation (7.4%).
"I don't consider [quetiapine] a first-line drug, but it may play a role in refractory PTSD," Dr. Hamner concluded, adding that the next step is to test the drug in a larger, multicentre study.
Presentation title: Quetiapine Monotherapy in Chronic Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial. (Poster 119)
