Clinical comparison on the effects of escitalopram and amitriptyline in treating depression patients with suicide-related symptoms
10.3760/cma.j.issn.1674-6554.2014.04.015
- VernacularTitle:艾司西酞普兰与阿米替林对抑郁自杀相关症状的临床对照研究
- Author:
Gengyi CHEN
;
Zhensong GAO
;
Zhengxiong CHEN
- Publication Type:Journal Article
- Keywords:
Depression;
Suicide;
Escitalopram;
Amitriptyline;
Control study
- From:
Chinese Journal of Behavioral Medicine and Brain Science
2014;23(4):338-340
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Objective To explore the effects and safety of escitalopram on suicide-related symptoms for depression patients controlled with amitriptyline.Methods Depression patients with suicide-related symptoms were randomly grouped.The study group(n=35) were treated with escitalopram 10 mg/d to 20 mg/d and the control group(n=33) were done with amitriptyline 75 mg to 250 mg daily.Both groups with psychotherapy were carried out for 8 weeks' observation.The Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17) and Clinical Global Impression-severity of illness (CGI-SI) were tested and suicide-related examined before and after 1,2,4,6 and 8 weeks'treatment.The Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale (TESS) was checked at 4th week to evaluate safety.Results In the study group,the incidence of wishing to die (97.1%),suicidal attempts (91.4%),suicidal ideations (88.6%),suicidal plans (80.0%),hopelessness (71.4%) and suicidal behavior (54.3%) was similar to the control group(97.0%,97.0%,90.9%,87.9%,72.7% and 54.5%,respectively,x2 =0.00-0.94,P>0.05).The incidence of suicide-related symptoms showed significantly lower after treatment than before (P<0.01).At 1st week treatment,the incidences of hopelessness (37.1%),suicidal plans (45.7%) and suicidal ideations (48.6%)showed significantly lower in the study group than those in the control group(63.6%,72.7% and 75.8%,respectively,x2 =4.77,5.12,5.32,P< 0.05).The study group showed significantly lower side-effects (11.4%) at 4th weeks' treatment than the control group(62.9%,x2 =21.95,P<0.01).Conclusion The effects of escitalopram on suicide-related symptoms for depression patients is similar to amitriptyline but with faster effect and higher safety.