Research Unit on Pediatric Psychopharmacology Anxiety Treatment Study

To evaluate fluvoxamine in the treatment of children and adolescents with anxiety disorders. Fluvoxamine is a serotonin reuptake inhibitor that is FDA-approved for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in adults and children. Anxiety disorders other than OCD are very common in youth and are not always responsive to psychosocial therapies. Fluvoxamine is an alternative treatment. After a 3-week period of evaluation, patients meeting study entry criteria are randomized to receive either fluvoxamine or placebo for 8 weeks. After this double-blind phase, patients can enter a 4-month open-label extension.