Researchers at UT-Southwestern are casting doubt on the utility of prescribing antidepressants to patients with depression and chronic medical conditions, such as kidney disease or COPD.
A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found depressed patients with chronic kidney disease did not benefit from a common antidepressant. The finding follows other research that indicates traditional antidepressants are also ineffective in depressed people with chronic conditions such as asthma and congestive heart failure.
“There is little justification in prescribing an antidepressant that will not work and will only cause side effects,” says Dr. Madhukar Trivedi, senior author of the JAMA study and director of the Center for Depression Research and Clinical Care, part of the Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute at UT Southwestern Medical Center.
Experts with the O’Donnell Brain Institute say enough evidence now exists to prompt immediate change in how doctors approach depression cases in conjunction with chronic medical diseases.
