Am J Psychiatry 1985; 142:1032-1036
Copyright © 1985 by American Psychiatric Association
Imipramine in the treatment of agoraphobia: dose-response relationships
M Mavissakalian and J Perel
The authors examined dose-response relationships in 62 agoraphobic patients
receiving either imipramine or placebo under double-blind conditions in
conjunction with behavioral interventions. At the end of 12 weeks, patients
treated with imipramine had improved significantly more than placebo
patients. Results revealed that the beneficial therapeutic effect of
imipramine was dose dependent and suggested that optimal response in
agoraphobia may require doses of 150 mg/day or more. The results also
indicated that side effects can significantly interfere with the buildup of
optimal dose in agoraphobic patients treated with imipramine. The authors
briefly discuss the implications of these findings for clinical practice
and future research.
