Antidepressants demonstrate superiority against placebos

A study published today in The Lancet indicates that anti-depressant drugs are more effective at relieving the symptoms of major depressive disorder than placebos. The study, led by researchers at Oxford Health (Oxford, UK) evaluated data from 522 trials, comprising 116,477 individuals, along with unpublished data. Overall, it demonstrated that 21 commonly prescribed anti-depressant drugs exhibit superior efficacy at treating symptoms of acute depression when compared with placebo treatment. The research also revealed that the drugs ranged from being one-third more effective than placebo treatment to twice as effective. Agomelatine, amitriptyline and escitalopram were among the most effective drugs, whilst...