Does pretreatment anxiety predict response to either bupropion SR or sertraline?

• Published in: Journal of affective disorders Vol. 64; no. 1; pp. 81 - 87
• Main Authors: Rush, A.John, Batey, Sharyn R., Donahue, Rafe M.J., Ascher, John A., Carmody, Thomas J., Metz, Alan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier B.V 01.04.2001; Elsevier
• Subjects: Antidepressive Agents - administration & dosage; Antidepressive Agents - therapeutic use; Anxiety Disorders - diagnosis; Anxiety Disorders - drug therapy; Biological and medical sciences; Bupropion SR; Buspirone - administration & dosage; Buspirone - therapeutic use; Delayed-Action Preparations; Double-Blind Method; Humans; Medical sciences; Neuropharmacology; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Pretreatment anxiety; Prognosis; Psychoanaleptics: cns stimulant, antidepressant agent, nootropic agent, mood stabilizer..., (alzheimer disease); Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopharmacology; Response prediction; Retrospective data analysis; Retrospective Studies; Sertraline; Sertraline - administration & dosage; Sertraline - therapeutic use; Surveys and Questionnaires; Treatment Outcome; Pretreatment anxiety; Bupropion SR; Retrospective data analysis; Sertraline; Response prediction; Mood disorder; Human; Amfebutamone; Serotonin; Psychotropic; Treatment efficiency; Prediction; Depression; Slow release form; Recurrent; Reuptake inhibitor; Retrospective; Symptomatology; Concomitant disease; Chemotherapy; Treatment; Antidepressant agent; Anxiety; Pretreatment; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0165-0327; 1573-2517
• DOI: 10.1016/S0165-0327(00)00250-0

Background: A common clinical belief is that more sedating and/or serotonin-selective antidepressants are preferred for depressed patients with symptoms of anxiety compared with more activating and/or catecholamine-selective antidepressants. The purpose of this study was to determine whether higher baseline anxiety is associated with different antidepressant responses to bupropion sustained release (SR) or sertraline. Methods: A retrospective data analysis was conducted using pooled data from two identical 8-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter studies of bupropion SR ( n=234), sertraline ( n=225), and placebo ( n=233) in adult outpatients with recurrent, major depressive disorder. Anxiety symptoms were measured using the 14-item Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale scores. Results: Baseline anxiety levels were not related to antidepressant response to treatment with either bupropion SR or sertraline, nor did they differentiate between responders to bupropion SR and responders to sertraline. Conclusions: Baseline anxiety levels do not appear to be a basis for selecting between bupropion SR and sertraline in the treatment of outpatients with major depressive disorder.