Early placebo response in anxious and depressed patients.

Specific subgroups of anxiety disorder patients (N = 130) and depression patients (N = 105), defined according to DSM-III criteria, were given 1 week of placebo treatment as part of ongoing clinical drug trials. Placebo responses and dropout rates were assessed at the end of the placebo trial period. The results indicate a comparable dropout rate between depression and anxiety disorder groups due to positive placebo response, negative placebo response, and "nonsymptomatic" reasons. In addition, male anxiety disorder patients dropped out at a significantly higher rate than male depression patients.