Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry
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Prog. Neuropsychopharmacol. Biol. Psychiatry · Jun 2006
Comparative Study Clinical TrialRisperidone in the treatment of psychotic depression.
In the preset study, the authors investigated that effects of the antipsychotic drug risperidone on psychotic depression and examined the mechanism of risperidone to ameliorate psychotic depression. Fifteen patients met the DSM-IV criteria for major depressive disorder with psychotic features and the remaining five patients met those for bipolar I disorder (most recent episode depressed) with psychotic features (M/F: 8/12, age: 54+/-18). All patients were evaluated regarding their clinical improvement using the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (Ham-D), and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). ⋯ Plasma HVA levels before risperidone administration in responders were significantly higher than those in nonresponders. In addition, a significant correlation was observed between changes in plasma HVA level and the percentage improvement on Ham-D score. These results indicate that treatment with risperidone is effective to ameliorate psychotic depression, and the influence of risperidone on dopaminergic activity is associated with its efficacy.