BACKGROUND:Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious psychiatric illness associated with significant morbidity and mortality. There is little empirical support for specific treatments and new approaches are sorely needed. This two-site study aimed to determine whether olanzapine is superior to placebo in increasing body mass index (BMI) and improving psychological symptoms in out-patients with AN. METHOD: A total of 23 individuals with AN were randomly assigned in double-blind fashion to receive olanzapine or placebo for 8 weeks together with medication management sessions that emphasized compliance. Weight, other physical assessments and measures of psychopathology were collected. RESULTS: End-of-treatment BMI, with initial BMI as a covariate, was significantly greater in the group receiving olanzapine [F(1, 20)=6.64, p=0.018]. Psychological symptoms improved in both groups, but there were no statistically significant group differences. Of the 23 participants, 17 (74%) completed the 8-week trial. Participants tolerated the medication well with sedation being the only frequent side effect and no adverse metabolic effects were noted. CONCLUSIONS: This small study suggests that olanzapine is generally well tolerated by, and may provide more benefit than placebo for out-patients with AN. Further study is indicated to determine whether olanzapine may affect psychological symptoms in addition to BMI.
RCT Entities:
BACKGROUND:Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious psychiatric illness associated with significant morbidity and mortality. There is little empirical support for specific treatments and new approaches are sorely needed. This two-site study aimed to determine whether olanzapine is superior to placebo in increasing body mass index (BMI) and improving psychological symptoms in out-patients with AN. METHOD: A total of 23 individuals with AN were randomly assigned in double-blind fashion to receive olanzapine or placebo for 8 weeks together with medication management sessions that emphasized compliance. Weight, other physical assessments and measures of psychopathology were collected. RESULTS: End-of-treatment BMI, with initial BMI as a covariate, was significantly greater in the group receiving olanzapine [F(1, 20)=6.64, p=0.018]. Psychological symptoms improved in both groups, but there were no statistically significant group differences. Of the 23 participants, 17 (74%) completed the 8-week trial. Participants tolerated the medication well with sedation being the only frequent side effect and no adverse metabolic effects were noted. CONCLUSIONS: This small study suggests that olanzapine is generally well tolerated by, and may provide more benefit than placebo for out-patients with AN. Further study is indicated to determine whether olanzapine may affect psychological symptoms in addition to BMI.
Authors: Jair de Jesus Mari; Luís Fernando Tófoli; Cristiano Noto; Li M Li; Alessandra Diehl; Angélica M Claudino; Mario F Juruena Journal: Drugs Date: 2013-09 Impact factor: 9.546
Authors: Pouneh K Fazeli; Genevieve L Calder; Karen K Miller; Madhusmita Misra; Elizabeth A Lawson; Erinne Meenaghan; Hang Lee; David Herzog; Anne Klibanski Journal: Int J Eat Disord Date: 2012-06-26 Impact factor: 4.861
Authors: Evelyn Attia; Joanna E Steinglass; B Timothy Walsh; Yuanjia Wang; Peng Wu; Colleen Schreyer; Jennifer Wildes; Zeynep Yilmaz; Angela S Guarda; Allan S Kaplan; Marsha D Marcus Journal: Am J Psychiatry Date: 2019-01-18 Impact factor: 18.112