Antidepressant News and Research

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Antidepressants are medicines that treat depression. Your doctor can prescribe them for you. They can improve your mood, sleep, appetite and concentration. It may take several weeks for them to help. There are several types of antidepressants. You and your doctor may have to try several before finding what works best for you.

FDA proposal on antidepressants is premature and may be counterproductive

The recent FDA proposal to force antidepressants to carry warnings about increased suicide risk is the subject of a pair of articles by leading experts in The Annals of Pharmacotherapy.

23 Sep 2004

Wyeth supports FDA recommendation to strengthen antidepressant labeling

Statement by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals supporting the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Joint Advisory Committee’s recommendation to strengthen the product labels across the antidepressant category regarding use in the pediatric population.

16 Sep 2004

Prozac, Paxil, Wellbutrin, Zoloft, Celexa, Effexor, Luvox and Remeron should have "Black Box" warnings

A panel of experts has voted 15 to 8 in favour of the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) adding black box warnings to certain medications used to treat depression in children and teenagers.

14 Sep 2004

Depressed patients may need treatment for both physical and emotional symptoms

Physical symptoms (such as headache, back pain, stomach problems, joint or muscle pains, and dizziness) are nearly as common in depression as emotional symptoms and are the predominant complaint depressed patients present with in the primary care setting.

8 Sep 2004

Cymbalta approved for diabetic peripheral neuropathy pain

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Eli Lilly's Cymbalta, a balanced and potent serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. Cymbalta is the first and only FDA-approved treatment for pain caused by diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

8 Sep 2004

Cymbalta, treatment for major depression hits the market

Cymbalta, a new treatment for major depression, is now available by prescription in pharmacies across the United States, Eli Lilly and Company has announced.

26 Aug 2004

Prozac helps treat adolescents with depression

The TADS researchers said that major depressive disorder is common, with one in 20 teens affected at varying levels of severity. Like other forms of depression, major depressive disorder has been associated with increased risk of suicidal behavior and with completed suicide.

26 Aug 2004

Nicotine replacement therapy shown to help teenagers and women

In the first study, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have found that the nicotine patch seems to work as well, at least initially, for teens as it does for adults. In addition, the patch, the top delivery form of NRT (followed by gum, an inhaler and a nasal spray) worked equally well with or without supplementation by an anti-depressant given to the teens.

21 Aug 2004

Current information on the use of antidepressants in pediatric patients

The Food and Drug Administration has issued an update to provide health care providers and patients with the most current information on the use of antidepressants in pediatric patients.

21 Aug 2004

"Treatment for Adolescents with Depression Study" - a landmark study

The "Treatment for Adolescents with Depression Study" (TADS), reported in this week's Journal of the American Medical Association, is the first multi- center, randomized clinical effectiveness trial to review a combination of treatments for the types of adolescent depression likely to be treated in routine community-based practice settings.

18 Aug 2004

Treatment of child depression most successful with Prozac and cognitive-behavior therapy combination

A new study by researchers at the UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, have found that treatment of child depression was most successful when a combination of Prozac and cognitive-behavior therapy was applied.

18 Aug 2004

Smoking may be on the rise again

The statistics are alarming: About one in five high school seniors smoke cigarettes daily. Yet nearly half a million Americans die prematurely from tobacco-related disease and smoking is projected to in some way kill one third of all smokers.

15 Aug 2004

Newborns may be harmed when pregnant women take Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) and other anti-depressants during the third trimester of pregnancy

Health Canada is advising Canadians that newborns may be adversely affected when pregnant women take Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) and other newer anti-depressants during the third trimester of pregnancy.

9 Aug 2004

Molecular pathway in the brain may explain why some patients suffering from inflammatory diseases develop depression

Feeling sick can be "all in the head" for people with inflammatory disorders or for those receiving immunotherapy, say Robert Dantzer and Keith Kelley, professors in the department of animal sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

29 Jul 2004

Study to begin to develop patient guidelines for the use of antidepressant medications in pregnancy and following birth

The University of Arizona department of psychiatry is conducting a first-of-its kind study to begin to develop patient guidelines for the use of antidepressant medications in pregnancy and following birth.

21 Jul 2004

Suicidal behavior is higher in the first month after starting antidepressants

A new study in the current issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that the risk of suicidal behavior is higher in the first month after starting antidepressants.

20 Jul 2004

Fluoxetine, orlistat, and sibutramine can diabetics achieve significant weight loss

According to information in the article, the prevalence of obesity in the United States increased from 12 percent in 1991 to 18 percent in 1998. Recent survey data indicate that 65 percent of Americans are overweight.

13 Jul 2004

SSRI addiction is a myth

Up to two out of three people who come off modern anti-depressants suffer short-term withdrawal symptoms including dizziness, nausea and low mood.

10 Jul 2004

Rates of suicide in England and Wales have plummeted in middle-aged and elderly men

British men who hit their mid-fifties today are half as likely to kill themselves as their fathers and grandfathers.

10 Jul 2004

Health Canada warning on Trazodone interaction with certain medications

Health Canada, in association with Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada, is advising Canadians to consult with their health care professionals if they are currently being treated with the antidepressant trazodone in combination with any of the following medications: ketoconazole (an antifungal agent), ritonavir and indinavir (protease inhibitors used in the treatment of HIV), or carbamazepine (an anti-epileptic therapy).

9 Jul 2004