Anxiety

A new study indicates there is a difference in how effective a common antidepressant is in females and males.

Elizabeth Young, M.D., Director of the University of Michigan Medical School and member of the Depression Center and her colleagues examined the effectiveness of Celexa on 2,876 individuals, who ranged in age from 18-75 years old. All of the participants had suffered from major depression for several years, with an average of 12 years.

Participants took Celexa over a number of weeks’ time, with the dosage of the antidepressant increasing over the time they took it. While participants were allowed to continue seeing their counselors or therapists during the study period, they were not permitted to take any other antidepressant medication.

The researchers found that women were 33% more likely to respond to Celexa, and to have their depression helped by the medication than were men, even though women were typically more depressed than men at the beginning of the study period. It is also important to note that this difference held, even after other factors were accounted for by the researchers.

Additionally, the researchers discovered no significant differences among men and women in side effects experienced from the medication, the amount of time it took to achieve some relief from depression symptoms, and the amount of time men and women stuck with taking Celexa.

The authors of the study assert it is important to note that 24% of men who took Celexa for their depression were helped by the antidepressant.

The authors also note they do not know why women were more likely to respond to the medication than men were. An additional study is being conducted by other researchers in order to determine if hormones play a part in why women respond to the medication more often than men do. It will be interesting to find out the results of this study in the future.

The complete study and its findings can be found in the Journal of Psychiatric Research. The study was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and by private funding.

For more information about depression, please visit the National Institute of Mental Health’s page on Depression.

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Science Daily:
Sex Differences Seen in Response to Common Antidepressant