Azapirones may be less effective than benzodiazepines and we were unable to conclude if azapirones were superior to antidepressants , kava kava or psychotherapy .
Azapirones appeared to be well tolerated .
Azapirones appeared to be useful in the treatment of GAD , particularly for those participants who had not been on a benzodiazepine .
Azapirones may not be superior to benzodiazepines and do not appear as acceptable as benzodiazepines .
Side effects appeared mild and non serious in the azapirone treated group .
Longer term studies are needed to show that azapirones are effective in treating GAD , which is a chronic long-term illness
BACKGROUND Azapirones are a group of drugs that work at the 5-HT1A receptor and are used to treat patients suffering from generalized anxiety disorder ( GAD ) .
However , several studies have shown conflicting results .
Whether azapirones are useful as first line treatment in general anxiety disorders still needs to be answered .
OBJECTIVES To assess the efficacy and the acceptability of azapirones for the treatment of GAD .
Efficacy and safety of two dosing regimens of buspirone in the treatment of outpatients with persistent anxiety.
This r and omized , double-masked , comparative study evaluated the efficacy and safety of buspirone 30 mg/d , administered twice a day ( BID ) or three times a day ( TID ) , in patients with generalized anxiety disorder ( GAD ) , commonly called persistent anxiety . Patients who participated had GAD according to criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders . Third Edition , Revised , modified to include patients for whom the symptom duration was at least 4 weeks and scored > or = 18 on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety ( HAM-A ) . After a 7-day placebo lead-in phase , patients who continued to qualify were r and omized to receive buspirone , titrated from 15 mg/d ( 5 mg TID ) to 30 mg/d , as either a BID or TID regimen , for 8 weeks . Of the 137 patients who began the study , 120 patients were included in the data evaluation . Both buspirone BID and TID treatment groups demonstrated significant reductions in mean HAM-A total scores and improvement on Clinical Global Impression measures , with no significant differences detected between the two treatment groups for either measure at any time point . The overall incidence of adverse events was similar for both treatment groups , except for a significantly greater incidence of amblyopia in patients receiving buspirone 15 mg BID . In summary , there was no appreciable difference in efficacy or safety between buspirone 15 mg BID or 10 mg TID in patients with persistent anxiety
Azapirones may be less effective than benzodiazepines and we were unable to conclude if azapirones were superior to antidepressants , kava kava or psychotherapy .
Azapirones appeared to be well tolerated .
Azapirones appeared to be useful in the treatment of GAD , particularly for those participants who had not been on a benzodiazepine .
Azapirones may not be superior to benzodiazepines and do not appear as acceptable as benzodiazepines .
Side effects appeared mild and non serious in the azapirone treated group .
Longer term studies are needed to show that azapirones are effective in treating GAD , which is a chronic long-term illness
BACKGROUND Azapirones are a group of drugs that work at the 5-HT1A receptor and are used to treat patients suffering from generalized anxiety disorder ( GAD ) .
However , several studies have shown conflicting results .
Whether azapirones are useful as first line treatment in general anxiety disorders still needs to be answered .
OBJECTIVES To assess the efficacy and the acceptability of azapirones for the treatment of GAD .