Social adjustment in depressed patients treated with venlafaxine and amitriptyline.
Social dysfunction is often associated with depressive disorders and its evaluation is an important measure of treatment outcome. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of two treatments, venlafaxine and amitriptyline, on the social functioning of depressed patients. Twenty-eight outpatients, meeting criteria for recurrent or single major depressive episodes, took part in a double-blind, 8-week trial with amitriptyline or venlafaxine (maximum of 150 mg/day) and were assessed by the Self-Report Social Adjustment Scale (SAS-SR) before and at the end of treatment. The scale was also applied to a carefully selected non-psychiatric sample. Both drugs showed the same efficacy on a clinical scale, but venlafaxine improved social functioning more than amitriptyline as only venlafaxine-treated patients reached SAS-SR values estimated for normal subjects. This effect might be linked to the higher rate of side-effects observed with amitriptyline.
Departamento de Farmacologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, LIM-23, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. cgorenst@usp.br
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Gorenstein
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Andrade
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Moreno
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Artes
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000639:Amitriptyline / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000929:Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003511:Cyclohexanols / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D000069470:Venlafaxine Hydrochloride
D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation; D000929:Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic; D003511:Cyclohexanols; D000639:Amitriptyline; D000069470:Venlafaxine Hydrochloride