Tuesday, December 6, 2011
(HealthDay News) — Newer antidepressants seem to be about as effective as one another, a new analysis indicates. This suggests that the choice of which drug is appropriate for which patient should be made on the basis of such considerations as side effects, cost and patient preference. “They’re all equally effective,” said Dr. David Schlager, [...]
HealthDay News — The antidepressant Prozac may help ease repetitive behaviors in some adults with autism, a new study indicates.Researchers randomly assigned 37 adults with autism to take either Prozac fluoxetine or a placebo for 12 weeks. The study participants had difficulties with repetitive behaviors, such as arm flapping, as well as issues with restricted [...]
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Does your antidepressant “kind of” work? If you feel better, but not good or normal, after starting a new antidepressant, you’re probably experiencing what’s known as a “partial response.” This can be very frustrating, and unfortunately many people assume that a partial response is the best they’re going to get, especially if their doctor hasn’t [...]
(HealthDay News) — High doses of the popular antidepressant Celexa can cause potentially fatal abnormal heart rhythms and should no longer be prescribed to patients, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday. Doses of Celexa (citalopram hydrobromide) greater than 40 milligrams a day can cause changes in the electrical activity of the heart, which [...]
(HealthDay News) — Americans are popping more antidepressants than ever before to deal with everyday stress, and non-psychiatrists are increasingly willing to prescribe the drugs to patients with no mental health diagnosis, a new study finds. Antidepressants such as Prozac, Paxil and Lexapro are now the third most widely prescribed group of drugs in the [...]
(HealthDay News) — In the days after they start taking non-SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants, such as bupropion or venlafaxine, nursing home residents are at significantly greater risk for falls, according to a new study. Researchers found the increased risk for falls also applies to those who had a dosage increase of their current [...]
IN terms of perception, these are hard times for antidepressants. A number of articles have suggested that the drugs are no more effective than placebos. Last month brought an especially high-profile debunking. In an essay in The New York Review of Books, Marcia Angell, former editor in chief of The New England Journal of Medicine, [...]
(Reuters Health) – Two antidepressants appear to be associated with a small risk of birth defects, according to a new analysis based on national data from Finland. Specifically, the researchers found that women taking fluoxetine (Prozac) and paroxetine (Paxil) were slightly more likely to give birth to babies with specific types of heart defects. But [...]
HealthDay News — Taken in combination, two commonly prescribed drugs, the antidepressant Paxil and the cholesterol-lowering medication Pravachol, appear to significantly raise blood sugar levels, a new study finds.The increase is most apparent — and concerning — among diabetics, whose blood sugar is already too high, the researchers noted.”This interaction may affect as many as [...]
(Reuters Health) – Certain types of antidepressants may not work as well in people that take painkillers such as ibuprofen and aspirin, suggests a new study. The findings can’t prove that the painkillers, called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or NSAIDs, stop antidepressants from working, the authors said. But the possible link is something for patients with [...]
