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Lack of beneficial effects of clonidine in the treatment of premenstrual dysphoric disorder: results of a double‐blind, randomized study
Author(s) -
Bunevicius Robertas,
Hinderliter Alan L.,
Light Kathleen C.,
Pedersen Cort A.,
Girdler Susan S.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
human psychopharmacology: clinical and experimental
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.461
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1099-1077
pISSN - 0885-6222
DOI - 10.1002/hup.652
Subject(s) - clonidine , premenstrual dysphoric disorder , placebo , mood , psychology , anesthesia , randomized controlled trial , psychiatry , affect (linguistics) , medicine , menstrual cycle , hormone , alternative medicine , pathology , communication
Objectives To test the effects of clonidine in comparison with active placebo on premenstrual symptoms, mood scores and norepinephrine (NE) concentration, in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). Methods Twelve women with prospectively confirmed PMDD were randomly assigned to oral 0.3 mg/day clonidine, as an active treatment, or 10 mg/day loratadine, as an active placebo, for 2 months each using a double‐blind, cross‐over design. NE concentration, premenstrual symptom ratings and mood scales were measured on three occasions: at pretreatment, after clonidine treatment and after placebo treatment. All patients were free of current psychiatric co‐morbidity and medication use. Results There were no significant differences between clonidine and placebo for mood scales or premenstrual symptom ratings, though clonidine significantly suppressed NE concentration and produced more side effects in comparison with placebo. Conclusion Compared with an active placebo clonidine demonstrated no beneficial changes in mood and premenstrual symptoms in women with PMDD. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.