fluoxetine + placebo

Fluoxetine + placebo refers to a specific control arm used in clinical trials, most notably in a study conducted by the **University of São Paulo** (NCT00466609) investigating augmentation strategies for treatment-resistant **obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)**. In this double-blind, double-dummy trial, the arm represents fluoxetine monotherapy, where patients receive fluoxetine (up to 80 mg/day) combined with an inert placebo to maintain the blinding against other augmentation arms, such as fluoxetine plus quetiapine or clomipramine. **Fluoxetine** is a well-established small-molecule **selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)** that primarily targets the **serotonin transporter (SERT)**, inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin and thereby increasing its availability in the synaptic cleft. This regimen is used to establish a baseline of response to high-dose SSRI therapy before concluding that a patient is truly non-responsive to first-line treatment.

Other names

fluoxetine monotherapyfluoxetine plus placebo