[Efficacy of antipsychotic augmentation therapy in treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder: a meta-analysis...

Only 40 - 60 % of all patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) respond to serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs). Therefore, the evaluation of additive treatment in the presence of treatment resistance has high clinical relevance. All double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trials that evaluated the efficacy of a combination therapy of SRIs and antipsychotics in treatment-resistant OCD were identified by systematic literature searches and combined in a meta-analysis. 11 studies with a total of 356 treatment-resistant patients were included. After the augmentation, significantly more subjects in the intervention groups (SRI + antipsychotic) fulfilled the response criterion (reduction in the Yale-Brown obsessive compulsive scale [Y-BOCS] ≥ 35 %) than in the control groups (SRI + placebo) (relative risk = 2.16). The subgroup analysis showed significant efficacy only for risperidone. Further significant differences have been found regarding the antipsychotic dosage and the SRI-treatment duration before the augmentation.