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Duloxetine Improves Functioning and Quality of Life in Patients with Anxiety Disorder: Presented at ADAA

By Jill Stein

ST. LOUIS, MO -- April 3, 2007 -- At least a third of patients with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) improve from an impaired score to a normative score on functional and quality of life measures after 9 to 10 weeks of duloxetine treatment, researchers announced here at the 27^th Annual Meeting of the Anxiety Disorders Association of America (ADAA).

Susan Ball, PhD, associate scientific communications consultant, Lilly Research Laboratories, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, reported data from a pooled analysis of 3 randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials of duloxetine treatment that enrolled a total of 1,163 adults with GAD.

Two studies had a 10-week flexible-dose 60 to 120 mg/day regimen, and 1 study had a 9- week fixed-dose 60 or 120 mg/day regimen. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were the same for the 3 studies.

At enrolment, 89% of subjects scored in the impaired range on the Sheehan Disability Scale (SDS) global functioning score. In addition, 95% were in the impaired range on the Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Short Form (Q-LES-Q-SF), and 76% were in the impaired range on the European Qualify of Life 5 Dimensions (EQ-5D).

The rates of impaired scores on role functioning and diminished wellbeing are consistent with prior studies of GAD patients, Dr. Ball said in her presentation on March 31^st.

Using the criteria of improvement to community values, duloxetine-treated patients were more likely to achieve this outcome on each quality of life measure (P < .001 for all comparisons). In fact, after acute therapy for 9 to 10 weeks, about one third to one half of duloxetine-treated patients had improved from an impaired score on the different functional and quality of life measures, and these percentages amounted to twice the rates of improvement observed in placebo-treated patients.

The study also found that functional remission was associated with at least a 60% improvement in efficacy scores from baseline to endpoint, and a Hamilton Anxiety Scale endpoint score less than or equal to 10 captured larger percentages of patients who had functional remission than did a cut-off score of 7 or less, Dr. Ball said.

The study was sponsored by Lilly.


[Presentation title: Examining Quality of Life in Patients with Generalized Anxiety Disorder: Clinical Relevance and Response to Duloxetine in Treatment. Abstract P62]

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