Suriclone and diazepam in the treatment of neurotic anxiety

✍ Scribed by J. Gerlach; J. K. Christensen; T. L. Rosted Christensen; J. Elley; P. Stigaard Jensen; S. B. Larsen

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1987
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 445 KB
• Volume: 93
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0033-3158
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00187246

✦ Synopsis

Suriclone is a new anxiolytic drug belonging to the family of cyclopyrrolones. Although chemically entirely different from the benzodiazepines, it acts as a benzodiazepine agonist with very high affinity for the benzodiazepine receptors. In the present cross-over study, 33 out-patients with a diagnosis of neurotic anxiety were treated with suriclone (mean dose 2 rag/day) and diazepam (25 mg/day) in two 6-week periods. Both drugs had a significant anxiolytic effect, but diazepam appeared to have a better effect within the first 2 weeks of treatment, while no significant difference was seen after treatment for 6 weeks. Suriclone and diazepare had a different side effect profile: suriclone produced mainly dizziness, while diazepam caused sedation. This may reflect the fact that suriclone and benzodiazepines bind to distinct sites or different allosteric conformations of the benzodiazepine receptors.