A03

• Biased evidence (-)


  • some believe evidence is biased because researchers are sponsored by drug companies and may selectively publish positive outcomes (Goldacre)
  • Also lack of independent studies of drug effectiveness also research on psychological therapy may be biased
• Serious side effects (-)

  Although SSRIs help most people, a small minority will get no benefit.

  some people also experience side-effects such as indigestion, blurred vision and loss of sex drive.

  These side-effects are usually temporary, however they can be quite distressing for people and for a minority they are long lasting.

  For those taking the tricyclic clomipramine, side-effects are more common and can be more serious. For example more than 1 in 10 people experience erection problems and weight gain, 1 in 100 become aggressive and experience heart-related problems.
• Cost effective and non disruptive (+)

  
  

  • cheap compared to psychological treatments because many thousands of tablets or liquid doses can be manufactured in the time it takes to conduct one session of a psychological therapy.
  • Using drugs to treat OCD is therefore good value for public health systems like the NHS and represents a good use of limited funds.
  • As compared to psychological therapies, SSRIs are also non-disruptive to people's lives. If you wish you can simply take drugs until your symptoms decline.
• Effectiveness (-)

  • Skapinakis carried out a systematic review of outcome studies and concluded that both cognitive and behavioural (exposure) therapies were more effective than SSRIs in the treatment of OCD.