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 .
Controlled comparison of the effects and abrupt discontinuation of buspirone and lorazepam
1 . The purpose of this study was to compare the effects and abrupt discontinuation of buspirone 15 or 20 mg tid and lorazepam 3 or 4 mg tid following 8 weeks of treatment . A total of 43 out patients with generalized anxiety disorder were included in the study and 39 entered the withdrawal phase . 2 . Clinical assessment s were performed at baseline , 2 , 4 , 6 and 8 weeks ( active phase ) and after 9 and 10 weeks ( withdrawal phase ) . These included the Hamilton anxiety scale , the visual analogue scale , the CHESS 84 ( a check list for the evaluation of somatic symptoms ) and the Lader tranquilizer withdrawal scale ( translated in french ) . 3 . Results show similar efficacy for lorazepam and buspirone during the active phase with a higher significant difference for buspirone on the CHESS 84 in relation with neurovegetatives symptoms :  lorazepam D0 : 16.30 + /- 3.14 D56 : 5.10 + /- 0.93 ( p < or = 0.01 ) buspirone D0 : 18.82 + /- 3.4 D56 : 4.73 + /- 1.18 ( p < or = 0.001 ) No withdrawal phenomena was observed for both drugs using HAM-A lorazepam D63 : 12.59 + /- 2.26 D70 : 12.0 + /- 1.75 ( p = ns ) buspirone D63 : 10.05 + /- 1.28 D70 : 10.32 + /- 1.82 ( p = ns ) and the same significant difference using Lader scale : lorazepam D63 : 4.44 + /- 0.89 D70 : 6.96 + /- 1.28 ( p < or = 0.05 ) buspirone D63 : 2.95 + /- 0.66 D70 : 4.15 + /- 0.92 ( p < or = 0.05 ) . 4 . This study confirmed that buspirone was as effective as lorazepam at D56 in monitored out patients with generalized anxiety disorder . ( ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS
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 .