Abstract

Objectives: The present study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of sodium valproate as an adjuvant treatment in patients afflicted with obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Method:42 patients diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder participated in an eight week- long double blind study. The subjects were placed in two groups,one taking fluoxetine along with sodium valproate and the other group taking fluoxetine with placebo.The efficacy of this adjuvant was assessed by Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale and Beck Depression Inventory. Data were analyzed by t-test, Mann-Whitney, and analysis of variance with repeated measures.

Findings: 12 patients from the sodium valproate group and 11 patients from the placebo group com- pleted the project.This evaluation illustrated that efficacy of sodium valproate did not cause signi- ficant difference between two groups. Headache, anxiety,and insomnia were observed more com- monly in the placebo group the rate of tremor was higher in the sodium valproate group.

Results: Sodium valproate as an adjuvant treatment in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder does not bind added efficacy in an eight weeklong treatment period.