H. Peter et al., Serum cholesterol in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder during treatment with behavior therapy and SSRI or placebo, INT J PSY M, 30(1), 2000, pp. 27-39
Objective: Patients with panic disorder are reported to have elevated chole
sterol levels. There is also some evidence that cholesterol elevation is no
t so much a specific condition in panic disorder but is generally associate
d with anxiety. So far, there is little data on cholesterol levels in patie
nts with obsessive compulsive disorders (OCD) which is also classified as a
nxiety disorder. Method: Thirty-three patients with OCD participated in the
study. Serum cholesterol was measured as pretreatment and at the end of a
ten-week treatment-period. All patients received behavior therapy and, in a
double-blind fashion, fluvoxamine or placebo. Severity of OCD was assessed
by the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS). Results: Pretreatme
nt cholesterol values of OCD patients were compared with cholesterol levels
of thirty panic disorder patients and thirty normal controls. OCD patients
had elevated cholesterol levels comparable with those of panic disorder pa
tients. Cholesterol levels decreased significantly from pre- to posttreatme
nt. OCD patients with high cholesterol levels (greater than or equal to 240
mg/dl, n = 7) could make best use of the treatment whereas patients with d
esirable cholesterol levels (< 200 mg/dl, n = 11) did not change their chol
esterol during treatment. Conclusions: Our data support the assumption that
not only panic disorder but also other anxiety disorders, e.g., obsessive
compulsive disorders, may be associated with serum cholesterol elevations.
Effective treatment (behavior therapy and/or treatment with a selective ser
otonin reuptake inhibitor [SSRI]) seems to decrease cholesterol levels, esp
ecially in patients with pathological cholesterol elevations.