What the Hull?

27 February 2008



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Study Suggests Anti-Depressants Don’t Work

Researchers at the University of Hull in the UK have made a startling discovery. Using a meta-analysis of all 47 clinical trials submitted to the FDA, published and unpublished, they found that serotonin reuptake inhibitors (which include Prozac and Zoloft) have the same effect on a depressed patient as a placebo. Only in the most extreme cases were they measurably better.

The lead researcher on the study was Professor Irving Kirsch who remarked, “The difference in improvement between patients taking placebos and patients taking anti-depressants is not very great. This means that depressed people can improve without chemical treatments. Given these results, there seems little reason to prescribe anti-depressant medication to any but the most severely depressed patients, unless alternative treatments have failed to provide a benefit.”

Naturally, the big drug dealers are unhappy. GlaxoSmithKline claimed the study was “at odds with the very positive benefits seen in actual clinical practice.” Eli Lilly issued a statement that said, “Extensive scientific and medical experience has demonstrated that fluoxetine [Prozac] is an effective antidepressant.” Wyeth was slightly more reasonable, “We recognise the need for both pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for depression.”

Professor Kirsch noted that getting all the information on drug trials was hard. “It has made it very difficult to answer the question of whether the drugs work. The pharmaceutical companies should be obliged when they get a drug licensed to make all the data available to the public. When you analyse all the trials of these SSRIs, both published and unpublished, it leads you to more sober conclusions.” Tim Kendall, deputy director of the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ research unit agreed, “The companies have this data but they will not release it. When we were drawing up the guidelines on prescribing antidepressants to children [in 2004] we wrote to all the companies asking for it but they said no. The Government pledged in its manifesto to compel the drug companies to give access to their data but that commitment has not been met.”

And what is the difference between being depressed and sad? In modern society, everyone is supposed to be happy and upbeat. True, that condition is more fun than being sad and grumpy. But mental health isn’t about that. It is about having emotions appropriate to one’s situation. Being sad at a funeral shows more mental balance than joy (unless one truly hated the deceased). Happy pills are largely unnecessary. Science finally appears to be proving it.

© Copyright 2008 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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