Journal of clinical psychopharmacology
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J Clin Psychopharmacol · Aug 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative StudyComparisons of the efficacy and tolerability of extended-release venlafaxine, mirtazapine, and paroxetine in treatment-resistant depression: a double-blind, randomized pilot study in a Chinese population.
To compare the efficacy and tolerability of antidepressants switch with extended-release venlafaxine (venlafaxine-XR), mirtazapine, and paroxetine in Chinese patients with major depressive disorder who had 2 consecutive unsuccessful antidepressant trials. One hundred fifty adult patients with treatment-resistant depression according to their medical records and/or response to current treatments were randomly assigned to receive fixed-dosage treatment of venlafaxine-XR 225 mg/d (n = 50), mirtazapine 45 mg/d (n = 55), or paroxetine 20 mg/d (n = 45) for 8 weeks. The primary outcome was the remission rates that were defined as a score 7 or lower on the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD-17). ⋯ Similarly, there were also no significant differences between groups in secondary outcome measure. Venlafaxine-XR, mirtazapine, and paroxetine were equally effective in the treatment of Chinese patients with major depressive disorder who failed at least 2 previous antidepressant treatments. Selecting any of these 3 antidepressants as a third-step antidepressant is a reasonable choice for this group of patients.
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J Clin Psychopharmacol · Aug 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialA post hoc analysis of negative symptoms and psychosocial function in patients with schizophrenia: a 40-week randomized, double-blind study of ziprasidone versus haloperidol followed by a 3-year double-blind extension trial.
Schizophrenia is a persistent, lifelong illness such that enduring functional improvements may only occur over the course of years [corrected]. This post hoc analysis in stable outpatients with schizophrenia investigated the negative symptom efficacy and treatment outcomes of ziprasidone (80-160 mg/d given twice a day, mean modal dose of 112 mg/d; and 80-120 mg/d given every day, mean modal dose of 96 mg/d) versus haloperidol (5-20 mg/d, mean modal dose of 12 mg/d) in a randomized, 40-week, double-blind study, followed by a double-blind continuation trial that extended up to 156 additional weeks. ⋯ A similar pattern was observed for the ziprasidone 80 to 120 mg group, which showed significant differences versus haloperidol in negative symptom remission and instrumental role functioning (but not other Quality-of-Life subscale measures). The clinically relevant outcome differences detected in this post hoc exploratory analysis support the potential for both enhanced remission in negative symptoms and psychosocial recovery during long-term treatment with an atypical agent and add to our understanding regarding the degree to which negative symptom remission can be attained in the maintenance phase.