Fluvoxamine treatment and D2 receptors: A pet study on OCD drug-naïve patients

Changes in D₂ receptors during antidepressant therapy have been reported in patients with major depressive disorder using PET/SPET. The aim of this study was to evaluate modifications in D₂ receptors that might occur in patients affected by obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) during serotonin reuptake sites inhibitors (SSRIs). To this purpose, we measured the in vivo binding of [¹¹C]raclopride ([¹¹C]Rac)in the brain of a group of OCD naíve patients before and after the repeated administration of the inhibitor SSRI fluvoxamine. Eight patients with a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IVth edition diagnosis of OCD completed the study undergoing a PET scan and a complete clinical evaluation before and during treatment with fluvoxamine. Patients have been compared also with a group of nine age-matched normal volunteers. Fluvoxamine treatment significantly improved clinical symptoms and increased [¹¹C]Rac binding potential (BP) in the basal ganglia of OCD patients (7.5±5.2, 6.9±6.9, and 9.9±9.3% in dorsal caudate, dorsal putamen, and ventral basal ganglia, respectively; p11C]Rac BP of previously drug-naíve OCD patients. The modifications in D₂ receptor availability might be secondary to fluvoxamine effects on serotoninergic activity.