Table 1.
Characteristics of studies included in the meta-analyses
| First author | Population ethnicity | Total sample(N) | Subjects receiving DCS/subjects receiving placebo | Male/female | Age (mean ± SD) | Subjects | Diagnostic tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kushner 200717 | – | 25 | 14/11 | – | – | Each subject with OCD received ten doses of 125 mg DCS or placebo doses and took one dose of study medication ~2 hours before each exposure/ritual prevention. ERP therapy session conducted twice weekly | OCD diagnosed by Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV52 and a Y-BOCS score ≥1853 |
| Storch 20078 | 22 Caucasian; 1 African; 1 Asian | 24 | 12/12 | 12/12 | 29.0±9.9 | Each subject with OCD took DCS or placebo (250 mg) 4 hours before each ERP therapy session. Total 12 weekly sessions | Diagnosis of OCD according to DSM-IV-TR criteria and then verified through administration of the ADIS for DSM-IV54 and Y-BOCS |
| Wilhelm 200816 | – | 23 | 10/13 | – | 40.0±13.4 for DCS group; 38.2±13.0 for placebo group | Subjects with OCD. Each took 100 mg DCS or placebo 1 hour before each of the ten exposure-based behavioral therapy sessions (conducted twice per week) | DSM-IV diagnosis of OCD |
| Storch 201019 | 97% Caucasian; 3% Hispanic | 30 | 15/15 | 19/11 | 12.2±2.8 | Subject (child) with OCD. Each took DCS or placebo 1 hour before each CBT session 4–10 (25 mg for children weighing between 25–45 kg and 50 mg for children weighing between 46–90 kg). (Sessions 1–4 held twice per week and sessions 5–10 held weekly) | Diagnosis of OCD according to ADIS for DSM-IV: parent Version (ADIS-IV-P)55 and CY-BOCS ≥1656 |
| Farrell 201318 | 16 Caucasian, 1 Asian | 17 | 9/8 | 7/10 | 13.11±3.33 | Each child and adolescent with difficult-to-treat OCD took DCS or placebo (25 mg for subjects <45 kg; and 50 mg for subjects >46 kg) 1 hour prior to each of ERP sessions 5–9. (Total nine sessions held weekly) | Each subject with primary diagnosis of OCD, difficult-to-treat OCD defined by an initial dose of CBT (six + sessions), including adequate ERP, with minimal or no initial response to treatment, reported by parents |
| Mataix-Cols 201420 | – | 27 | 13/14 | 14/13 | 14.7±2.1 for DCS group and 15.2±2.0 for placebo group | Each subject with OCD received 50 mg DCS or placebo immediately after each of the ten CBT sessions (total of 14 sessions over 17 weeks) | Each with principal diagnosis of OCD |
Abbreviations: DCS, D-cycloserine; OCD, obsessive compulsive disorder; ERP, exposure and response prevention; DSM-IV, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition; DSM-IV-TR, DSM-IV, text revision; Y-BOCS, Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale; ADIS-IV-P, ADIS for DSM-IV, parent version; CBT, cognitive behavioral therapy; ADIS, Anxiety Disorder Interview Schedule; CY-BOCS, Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale; SD, standard deviation.