Pharmacology News

Dextromethorphan ( think cough syrup) for OCD: A Promising Glutamate-Targeted Augmentation Strategy?


Listen Later

A small 2026 randomized controlled trial found that adding low-dose dextromethorphan (DXM, 15 mg twice daily) to ongoing SSRI treatment significantly reduced Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) scores in adults with SSRI-resistant OCD, dropping from about 26.6 to 16.3 over 12 weeks versus little change on placebo. Strengths include its double-blind, placebo-controlled design, strong statistical effect size, excellent tolerability with no reported side effects, and alignment with the glutamatergic hypothesis of OCD. Limitations center on the tiny sample size (n=40), single-center location in Iran, lack of secondary outcomes or long-term follow-up, and potential pharmacokinetic variability from SSRI interactions; broader evidence from meta-analyses of other glutamatergic agents supports the approach but calls for larger confirmatory trials.
...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Pharmacology NewsBy Circle Of Insight Productions

  • 3.7
  • 3.7
  • 3.7
  • 3.7
  • 3.7

3.7

7 ratings


More shows like Pharmacology News

View all
Stuff You Should Know by iHeartPodcasts

Stuff You Should Know

78,657 Listeners

Psychiatry & Psychotherapy Podcast by David Puder, M.D.

Psychiatry & Psychotherapy Podcast

1,346 Listeners

Psychiatry Unboxed with TheKicksShrink by TheKicksShrink

Psychiatry Unboxed with TheKicksShrink

5 Listeners

Side Effects with Dr. Josef by Josef Witt-Doerring

Side Effects with Dr. Josef

30 Listeners