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Cipralex (Escitalopram) Appears to be Superior to Both Placebo and Paroxetine in Treatment of General Anxiety Disorder: Presented at ECNP

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN -- October 11, 2004 -- Cipralex® / Lexapro® (escitalopram) is an effective and well tolerated treatment for general anxiety disorder (GAD), and significantly more effective than both placebo and paroxetine, according to a new study presented today at the ECNP (European College of Neuropsychopharmacology) in Stockholm. The proportion of patients reaching remission at the end of the study was also significantly higher for the escitalopram (10mg) group than either placebo or paroxetine.

"These are exciting results," said Dr Baldwin, School of Medicine, University of Southampton, UK. "Patients very often present to their doctors with symptoms of both depression and anxiety, and sometimes it is difficult to decide which is the primary problem. Treatments that are effective and well-tolerated in both depression and GAD are therefore most welcome. The evidence for the effectiveness of escitalopram in GAD is particularly impressive, as this is the fourth study out of four placebo controlled studies, which have shown a clear advantage for the active medication", he concluded.

The twelve-week, randomised, fixed dose study compared the efficacy and tolerability of escitalopram to placebo, using paroxetine as an active reference. Significantly better therapeutic effect was seen for both 10mg and 20mg escitalopram than for placebo (p<0.05). Escitalopram 10mg was also significantly (p<0.05) more effective than paroxetine 20mg.

The proportion of patients in remission at Week 12 was statistically significantly greater in the escitalopram 5mg, 10mg, and 20mg groups than in the placebo group (p<0.05), and significantly greater in the escitalopram 10mg group than in the paroxetine 20mg group (p<0.05). The remission rate at Week 12 for paroxetine 20mg was not significantly higher than that for placebo. As paroxetine to a large extent has been considered to be a standard treatment for many anxiety disorders, this further emphasises the strong results in favour of escitalopram.

Overall, the incidence of treatment-emergent adverse events was similar across treatment groups.

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is a relatively common disease, affecting approximately 8% of the worldwide population at some point in their life.(1) GAD turns daily life into a state of worry, anxiety, and fear. Excessive thinking and dwelling on the "what ifs" characterizes this anxiety disorder.

Reference

1) http://www.who.int/whr2001/2001/main/en/pdf/chapter2.en.pdf


SOURCE: Lundbeck

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