fluvoxamine and Asperger-Syndrome

Topics: Adaptation, Psychological; Asperger Syndrome; Benzodiazepines; Causality; Central Nervous System Depressants; Child; Child Behavior; Diagnosis, Differential; Early Diagnosis; Fluvoxamine; Humans; Interpersonal Relations; Melatonin; Nurse Practitioners; Nursing Assessment; Olanzapine; Prevalence; Primary Health Care; Prognosis; Psychological Tests; Psychology, Child; Risperidone; Serotonin Agents; Social Behavior; United States

The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy and tolerability of low-dose fluvoxamine (1.5 mg/kg/day) in youngsters with pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs). This was a prospective, open-label trial that included 18 subjects with a mean age of 11.3 +/- 3.6 years. Fourteen children (78%) completed the 10-week study. Premature discontinuation due to behavioral activation occurred in three participants. Although there was no response for the group as a whole, eight subjects (including all four females) were considered at least partial responders in intent-to-treat analyses. Neither pubertal status nor serotonin levels predicted clinical response. Fluvoxamine can be beneficial in the treatment of select children and adolescents with PDDs. Gender differences in selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) response warrant further investigation.

Topics: Adolescent; Asperger Syndrome; Child; Child Behavior Disorders; Drug Administration Schedule; Fluvoxamine; Humans; Prospective Studies; Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors; Treatment Outcome

An 8 year-old boy with Asperger's syndrome had difficulties in communicating with his teachers and classmates. He occasionally stole out of the classroom. He could not sleep at night recalling his awful experience and kept crying every night and refused to go to school. The treatment with fluvoxamine was started at the dose of 25 mg daily. Four weeks after the treatment, his repetitive behavior and hyperactivity decreased and night crying diminished. Although he still has difficulties in communicating with others, he is now able to attend extra-curricular classes in a private school. Fluvoxamine, a selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor that has been mainly used for patients with depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder, might be effective for compulsive symptoms and sleep disturbance of patients with pervasive developmental disorders.

Topics: Asperger Syndrome; Child; Fluvoxamine; Humans; Male; Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors; Sleep Wake Disorders; Stereotypic Movement Disorder; Treatment Outcome