Department of Pharmacodynamics and Toxicology, School of Pharmacy, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
Department of Psychiatry, Ibn-e-Sina Psychiatric Hospital, Mashhad, Iran.
Hum Psychopharmacol. 2021 Jul;36(4):e2780. doi: 10.1002/hup.2780. Epub 2021 Feb 18.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common disabling disorder. Crocin, the active component of the saffron plant (Crocus Sativus L.) has various pharmacological activities. The present study compared the efficacy and safety of crocin and fluoxetine in treatment of mild to moderate OCD.
METHODS & MATERIALS: Fifty patients with OCD, aged 18 to 60 years, were randomized to receive either crocin (15 mg) or fluoxetine (20 mg) capsules for 8 weeks. Eligible participants received one capsule/day in the first month, which followed by two capsules daily in the second month. The patients were evaluated using Yale-Brown Obsessive-compulsive scale (Y-BOCS) and Hamilton Anxiety Rating scale (HARS).
The mean Y-BOCS score in both groups decreased significantly during 2 months (p-value = 0.0001). Also, HARS score in the crocin group was changed from 17.16 to 13.04 whereas, in the fluoxetine group was decreased from 18.28 to 12.34. The results indicated no difference between the two groups in Y-BOCS and HARS score changes after 2-month trial (p-value >0.5). Also, fewer adverse effects were reported in the crocin group compared to the fluoxetine group.
According to our study, it seems that crocin is effective in treatment of patients with mild to moderate OCD with possibly fewer adverse effects compared to fluoxetine.
强迫症（OCD）是一种常见的致残性疾病。西红花中的有效成分藏红花酸具有多种药理活性。本研究比较了藏红花酸和氟西汀治疗轻中度 OCD 的疗效和安全性。
将 50 名年龄在 18 至 60 岁之间的 OCD 患者随机分为藏红花酸（15mg）或氟西汀（20mg）组，治疗 8 周。合格的参与者在第一个月每天服用一粒胶囊，随后在第二个月每天服用两粒胶囊。使用耶鲁-布朗强迫量表（Y-BOCS）和汉密尔顿焦虑量表（HARS）评估患者。
两组患者在 2 个月内 Y-BOCS 评分均显著降低（p 值=0.0001）。此外，藏红花酸组的 HARS 评分从 17.16 降至 13.04，而氟西汀组的 HARS 评分从 18.28 降至 12.34。在 2 个月的试验后，两组在 Y-BOCS 和 HARS 评分变化方面无差异（p 值>0.5）。此外，藏红花酸组的不良反应发生率低于氟西汀组。
根据我们的研究，藏红花酸似乎对轻中度 OCD 患者有效，与氟西汀相比，不良反应可能更少。
