TY - JOUR
T1 - D-Cycloserine Augmented Exposure Therapy for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
AU - Kushner, Matt G.
AU - Kim, Suck Won
AU - Donahue, Christopher
AU - Thuras, Paul
AU - Adson, David
AU - Kotlyar, Michael
AU - McCabe, James
AU - Peterson, Jillian
AU - Foa, Edna B.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported, in part, by a grant to the first author from the Obsessive-Compulsive Foundation (#450709).
PY - 2007/10/15
Y1 - 2007/10/15
N2 - Background: D-cycloserine (DCS), a glutamatergic partial N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) agonist, can facilitate extinction learning related to cued fear in animals and humans. We predicted that DCS would accelerate obsession-related distress reduction in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) undergoing extinction-based exposure therapy. Methods: We administered DCS (125 mg) or placebo in a double-blind fashion to individuals with OCD approximately 2 hours before each exposure session. Results: D-cycloserine decreased both the number of exposure sessions required to achieve clinical milestones and the rate of therapy dropout. After four exposure sessions, patients in the DCS group reported significantly greater decreases in obsession-related distress compared with the placebo group; however, after additional sessions, the placebo group tended to catch up. Conclusions: D-cycloserine augmentation has the potential to increase the efficiency, palatability, and overall effectiveness of standard exposure therapy for OCD.
AB - Background: D-cycloserine (DCS), a glutamatergic partial N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) agonist, can facilitate extinction learning related to cued fear in animals and humans. We predicted that DCS would accelerate obsession-related distress reduction in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) undergoing extinction-based exposure therapy. Methods: We administered DCS (125 mg) or placebo in a double-blind fashion to individuals with OCD approximately 2 hours before each exposure session. Results: D-cycloserine decreased both the number of exposure sessions required to achieve clinical milestones and the rate of therapy dropout. After four exposure sessions, patients in the DCS group reported significantly greater decreases in obsession-related distress compared with the placebo group; however, after additional sessions, the placebo group tended to catch up. Conclusions: D-cycloserine augmentation has the potential to increase the efficiency, palatability, and overall effectiveness of standard exposure therapy for OCD.
KW - Cognitive-behavioral therapy
KW - D-cycloserine
KW - obsessive-compulsive disorder
KW - treatment
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34548313337&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=34548313337&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.biopsych.2006.12.020
DO - 10.1016/j.biopsych.2006.12.020
M3 - Article
C2 - 17588545
AN - SCOPUS:34548313337
SN - 0006-3223
VL - 62
SP - 835
EP - 838
JO - Biological psychiatry
JF - Biological psychiatry
IS - 8
ER -