Antidepressant Type Does Not Affect Suicide Rate

uksurvivors : Message: Antidepressant Type Does Not Affect Suicide Rate: "Antidepressant Type Does Not Affect Suicide Rate"

There is no real difference between suicide rates in people taking different classes of antidepressants, say researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School.




For their study, the researchers looked at data from 287,543 adults in British Columbia, Canada, who began taking antidepressants between 1997 and 2005.



In the first year of treatment, 751 of the people studied attempted suicide while 104 actually completed a suicide. After making a comparison of suicide rates in people who were taking different classes of antidepressant, however, the researchers found was that there were no "clinically significant" differences between the groups. In other words, the differences found were so small that they could have occurred by chance alone.



What these results mean, say the researchers, is that treatment decisions should be based on how well the antidepressants work rather than any fears of increased suicidality with a particular type of antidepressant. Also, doctors should be vigilant in monitoring their patients for suicidality anytime they begin a new antidepressant, regardless of what class it may belong to.



According to the authors, these findings back up the FDA's previous decision to treat all antidepressants the same in its advisory regarding the increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors when taking an antidepressant.



The study appears in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.