Sex differences in antidepressant response in recent antidepressant clinical trials.
Some previous reports suggest that women respond differently than men to antidepressant treatment. Much of this literature compares men and women's response to tricyclics to that of newer antidepressants (SSRIs, SNRI), or only examines one particular antidepressant. This study compares men and women's responses to 6 newer antidepressants. A total of 15 randomized, placebo-controlled trials that included 323 depressed patients were examined for sex differences in antidepressant treatment response. Women had a significantly greater response than men to SSRI antidepressants. A similar trend was seen for those assigned to an SNRI antidepressant, although not to the same extent as with SSRI antidepressants. Although these gender differences in treatment response are not large enough to suggest that gender should guide the clinical use of SSRI and SNRI antidepressants, the results do have implications for the design and interpretation of antidepressant clinical trials. These findings also raise the possibility that antidepressants may work somewhat differently in men and women.
Khan
Arif
A
Northwest Clinical Research Center, 1900 116th Avenue NE #112, Bellevue, WA 98004, USA. akhan@nwcrc.net
Brodhead
Amy E
AE
Schwartz
Kelly A
KA
Kolts
Russell L
RL
Brown
Walter A
WA
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012737:Sex Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D018687:Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation; D009638:Norepinephrine; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors