Comparison of clomipramine, alprazolam and placebo in the treatment of obsessive—compulsive disorder

Forty‐four patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) were entered into a double‐blind randomly assigned treatment protocol with clomipramine (CMI) or placebo. In addition, alprazolam was administered to 14 OCD patients in a separate open‐treatment study. The response rate of patients completing treatment was 50 per cent with CMI, 19 per cent with placebo, and 18 per cent with alprazolam. Self‐ratings of obsessive–compulsive symptoms in intent to treat and completer samples demonstrated a significantly greater benefit with CMI than with alprazolam. Ratings of depression and clinician ratings of obsessionality in both intent‐to‐treat and completer samples did not, however, indicate differences between the treatment groups.