Arch Gen Psychiat
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Behavioral efficacy of haloperidol and lithium carbonate. A comparison in hospitalized aggressive children with conduct disorder.
The efficacy and safety of haloperidol, lithium carbonate, and placebo were critically assessed in 61 treatment-resistant, hospitalized children aged 5.2 to 12.9 years with diagnoses of conduct disorder, aggressive type. In this double-blind and well-controlled study, the optimal dosages of haloperidol ranged from 1.0 to 6.0 mg/day and those of lithium carbonate from 500 to 2,000 mg/day. ⋯ Both haloperidol and lithium carbonate were found to be significantly superior to placebo in decreasing behavioral symptoms. Although both medications were clinically effective, haloperidol was associated more often with untoward effects than was lithium carbonate.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Cognitive effects of lithium carbonate and haloperidol in treatment-resistant aggressive children.
The effects of lithium carbonate and haloperidol on cognition were examined in a placebo-controlled, double-blind study of 61 treatment-resistant, hospitalized school-aged children. They all had a DSM-III diagnosis of conduct disorder-- undersocialized , aggressive, with a profile of highly explosive and aggressive behavior. Children were assessed at the end of a two-week placebo-baseline period and again after four weeks of treatment. ⋯ Haloperidol (mean dose, 2.95 mg/day) caused significant decreases in Porteus Maze test quotient scores and a slowing of reaction time (RT) on a simple RT task. Lithium carbonate (mean dose, 1,166 mg/day) adversely affected qualitative scores on the Porteus Maze test. No significant treatment effects were found for the Matching Familiar Figures Test, short-term recognition memory and concept attainment tasks, or the Stroop Test.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Diazepam and propranolol in panic disorder and agoraphobia.
The response to diazepam and propranolol hydrochloride was compared in 21 patients who (with one exception) met DSM-III criteria for panic disorder and agoraphobia. Each drug was administered for two weeks in double-blind fashion according to a crossover design. ⋯ Panic attacks and phobic symptoms responded to diazepam, but not to propranolol. The results suggest that benzodiazepines constitute effective short-term treatment for these newly defined disorders.
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Many clinical and theoretic attempts have been made to link anxiety disorders and the beta-adrenergic nervous system. Six patients with panic disorder, who had panic attacks produced by sodium lactate infusions, were given repeated lactate infusions that were immediately preceded by intravenous administration of propranolol hydrochloride. In all cases, propranolol pretreatment infusion failed to prevent panic attacks, anxiety, tachycardia, and increased systolic BP during the lactate infusion.
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Catecholamine metabolites excreted by long-term methadone hydrochloride-dependent subjects were studied in a protocol involving a two-study design. After a two-week methadone maintenance period, 15 subjects underwent abrupt methadone withdrawal and 12 subjects, gradual methadone withdrawal. The first study compared levels of catecholamine metabolites excreted during the stable methadone period with those excreted during the abrupt withdrawal period, as well as with those eliminated by healthy nonaddicted controls. ⋯ However, higher levels of metanephreine were excreted during the stable methadone period than those in controls. During withdrawal, levels of metanephrine dropped a statistically significant amount in comparison with levels observed during the stable methadone period. The gradual withdrawal study confirmed these findings.