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Published in: Journal of Translational Medicine 1/2017

Open Access 01-12-2017 | Research

Xenon in the treatment of panic disorder: an open label study

Authors: Alexander Dobrovolsky, Thomas E. Ichim, Daqing Ma, Santosh Kesari, Vladimir Bogin

Published in: Journal of Translational Medicine | Issue 1/2017

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Abstract

Background

Current treatments of panic disorder (PD) are limited by adverse effects, poor efficacy, and need for chronic administration. The established safety profile of subanesthetic concentrations of xenon gas, which is known to act as a glutamate subtype NMDA receptor antagonist, coupled with preclinical studies demonstrating its effects in other anxiety related conditions, prompted us to evaluate its feasibility and efficacy in treatment of patients with PD.

Methods

An open-label clinical trial of xenon–oxygen mixture was conducted in 81 patients with PD; group 1 consisting of patients only with PD (N = 42); and group 2 patients with PD and other comorbidities (N = 39).

Results

Based on the analysis of the results of a number of psychometric scales used in this study (SAS, HADS, CGI), several conclusions can be made: (1) xenon is a potentially effective modality in acute treatment of PD; (2) an anti-panic effect of xenon administration persists for at least 6 months after the completion of the active phase of treatment; (3) xenon inhalation is well tolerated, with the drop-out rates being much lower than that of conventional pharmacotherapy (5.8% vs. 15%); (4) the severity of depressive disorders that frequently accompany PD can be significantly reduced with the use of xenon; (5) xenon may be considered as an alternative to benzodiazepines in conjunction with cognitive-behavioral therapy as a safe modality in treatment of anxiety disorder.

Conclusions

These data support the need for randomized double-blind clinical trials to further study xenon-based interventions.
Trial registration This clinical trial was retrospectively registered on April 14th, 2017 as ISRCTN15184285 in the ISRCTN database.
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Metadata
Title
Xenon in the treatment of panic disorder: an open label study
Authors
Alexander Dobrovolsky
Thomas E. Ichim
Daqing Ma
Santosh Kesari
Vladimir Bogin
Publication date
01-12-2017
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Journal of Translational Medicine / Issue 1/2017
Electronic ISSN: 1479-5876
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-017-1237-1

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