Safety and Efficacy of Pramipexole Treatment in Resistant Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Age between 18 and 64 years;

2. European Portuguese as mother tongue;

3. Patients diagnosed with OCD, regardless of subtype, according to DSM-5 and/or ICD-10criteria;

4. Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) score ≥ 16;

5. Patients resistant to the first-line treatment for OCD:

5.1 Patients who do not respond to treatment with at least two selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressants (SSRIs) at the maximum tolerated therapeutic dose during at least 12 weeks, i.e. patients in whom there is no reduction in the Y-BOCS score by 25% relative to the score obtained before starting treatment with SSRIs.

5.2 Patients who do not respond to treatment with risperidone or aripiprazole as potentiation of the SSRIs at the maximum tolerated therapeutic dose during at least 12 weeks, i.e. patients in whom there is no reduction in the Y-BOCS score by 25% relative to the score obtained before starting treatment with the antipsychotic or patients in whom the Y-BOCS score is kept ≥ 16 after the treatment with the antipsychotic.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Patients with current or anterior history of psychotic illness (schizophrenia,delusions, among others);

2. Patients with bipolar disorder;

3. Patients with tick disorder;

4. Patients with borderline personality disorder;

5. Patients with social anxiety disorder;

6. Patients with current or anterior history of dietary behavior disorders (at least inthe last 6 months);

7. Patients with a history of neurological disease or traumatic brain injury;

8. Patients with history of alcohol abuse or illicit substances (at least in the last 6months);

9. Patients who are passing or have passed in the last 6 months by a major depressiveepisode;

10. Patients that undergo deep brain stimulation;

11. Presence of sensory deficits impeding participation in clinical study;

12. Pregnant or in breastfeeding period;

13. Patients who are doing or have done psychotherapy in the last 6 months;

14. Patients doing medication or receiving prohibited treatments;

15. Patients with allergy to pramipexole or any of the excipients;

16. Patients with creatinine clearance ≤ 50 ml/min (calculated by Cockcroft-Gaultformula);

17. Patients with NYHA III or IV heart failure or any other severe cardiovasculardisease;

18. Hypotension (<90/60 mmHg) sitting position and hypotension orthostatic (drop insystolic AT ≥20 mmHg or diastolic AT ≥10 mmHg after 2-3 minutes of orthostatism) atthe screening;

19. Patients with contraindication to perform MRI cannot participate in the assessmentof the exploratory endpoint (i.e., other pre-specified outcomes).