How long does it take
for antidepressant therapies to act?
by
Parker G, Roy K, Menkes DB, Snowdon J,
Boyce P, Grounds D, Hughson B, Stringer C
School of Psychiatry,
University of New South Wales,
Psychiatry Unit,
Prince of Wales Hospital,
Randwick, Australia.
g.parker@unsw.edu.au
Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2000 Feb; 34(1):65-70

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To review the proposition that antidepressants have a delayed onset of action by employing measurement and analytic strategies that overcome problems confounding interpretation of many efficacy studies. METHOD: A subset of patients was recruited to the longitudinal component of the Australasian database study, was assessed at baseline, and then completed measures of depression and anxiety when treatment commenced, and every 3 days over the next 4 weeks. The trajectories of defined 4-week outcome responders and non-responders were compared. RESULTS: Both groups showed a similar decrease in depression (and anxiety) over the first 3 days. A clear trend break then occurred, with little further improvement in the non-responders, as against distinct and progressive improvement in the responders. Ongoing early improvement (across days 3-6) was a strong predictor of responder status. CONCLUSIONS: The small sample size limits firm interpretation, although distinct interpretive advantages to the study design are evident. Findings are compatible with a number of recent studies arguing against any extensive delayed onset of action for the antidepressant drugs, but argue for caution in interpreting immediate improvement as predicting likely responder status, and more for examining early and sustained improvement as such a marker.

TCAs
SSRIs
RIMAs
Options
Bupropion
Amineptine
Reboxetine
Nefazodone
Mirtazapine
Venlafaxine
21st Century
Antidepressants
Tranylcypromine
Pindolol (Visken)
Anti-anxiety drugs
Atypical depression
Retarded depression
New antidepressants
The monoamine hypothesis
Does early improvement predict later stable response?
Does early improvement triggered by antidepressants predict response/remission?

Refs
and further reading

HOME
HedWeb
Nootropics
cocaine.wiki
Future Opioids
BLTC Research
MDMA/Ecstasy
Superhapiness?
Utopian Surgery?
The Abolitionist Project
The Hedonistic Imperative
The Reproductive Revolution
Critique of Huxley's Brave New World

The Good Drug Guide
The Responsible Parent's Guide
To Healthy Mood Boosters For All The Family