After the acute phase treatment , as long as the drug was continued , the superiority of the combination over either monotherapy appeared to persist .
BACKGROUND Panic disorder can be treated with pharmacotherapy , psychotherapy or in combination , but the relative merits of combined therapy have not been well established .
OBJECTIVES To review evidence concerning short- and long-term advantages and disadvantages of combined psychotherapy plus antidepressant treatment for panic disorder with or without agoraphobia , in comparison with either therapy alone .
The Galway Study of Panic Disorder. I: Clomipramine and lofepramine in DSM III-R panic disorder: a placebo controlled trial.
Among 79 volunteer , unpaid , family doctor-referred psychiatric out patients with DSM III-R panic disorder , with and without agoraphobia , 66 completed a six week placebo-controlled trial of lofepramine versus clomipramine and 57 survivors were followed up for 6 months . All subjects received one hour per week concurrent behavioural counselling in the acute phase . Of 13 dropouts in the first 3 weeks , 9 ( of 27 ) were on clomipramine , 2 ( of 26 ) were on lofepramine and 2 ( of 26 ) were on placebo . The high ( 30 % ) early dropout from the clomipramine group was largely due to medication intolerance . Both drugs were superior to placebo by the end of week 6 on several st and ard rating scales but not on panic attack frequency . No significant differences in efficacy were found between the two drugs tested to the end of 6 months . No tendency for relapse was noted in the three months following taper-off of medication from week 12 to week 24 . The study provides evidence that both drugs , in the dosages used , are superior to placebo in the acute phase of panic disorder in treatment-naive subjects concurrently receiving appropriate psychotherapy
After the acute phase treatment , as long as the drug was continued , the superiority of the combination over either monotherapy appeared to persist .
BACKGROUND Panic disorder can be treated with pharmacotherapy , psychotherapy or in combination , but the relative merits of combined therapy have not been well established .
OBJECTIVES To review evidence concerning short- and long-term advantages and disadvantages of combined psychotherapy plus antidepressant treatment for panic disorder with or without agoraphobia , in comparison with either therapy alone .