The Stylus

Issue date: 2/3/10 Section: News

A recent study done by psychologists and researchers at The University of Pennsylvania suggests that placebos may be as effective at treating mild to moderate depression as antidepressants.

The findings, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, are based on data gathered from six trials. A total of 718 depressed patients were randomly assigned to take either antidepressants or placebos.

Only patients with severe depression showed a notable improvement as a result of taking antidepressants, as opposed to placebos.

Dr. David Abwender, the acting director of the MA psychology program at The College at Brockport, said these findings are not ground-breaking.

"The idea of a serotonin imbalance being the cause of depression is either wrong or only a tiny part of the problem," he said.

According to IMS Health, antidepressants are some of the most-prescribed medications in the U.S. In 2008, more than 164 million prescriptions were dispensed.

The two medicines that were used in the trials were Paxil, an SSRI, and Imipramine, a generic drug in an older class of antidepressants called tricyclics.

SSRIs, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, keep serotonin, a chemical in the brain that effects mood, from reabsorbing into the area that emits it and allows receptors, the areas that catch the chemical, so to speak, to absorb them.

Trycyclics, used less nowadays due to their strong side effects, increase the chemical messengers serotonin and noradrenaline in the brain.

Cheryl Sitchenko, nurse practitioner and assistant director at Brockport's student health center, said SSRIs are the most commonly prescribed antidepressants given to students.

According to the Child and Youth Health Web site, about one in four people suffer depression by age 24, but few seek help.

"This is often due to not understanding depression and being worried about what their friends might think," the site states.

Sitchenko and Abwneder both said people often seek help from their doctor, rather than a counselor or psychiatrist.

"Most people go to their doctors first if there is a problem," she said. "The last thing I want to do is label something right off."

She said most students she prescribes SSRIs to have a positive reaction to the medicine.

Sitchenko said the health center works closely with the school's counseling center to make sure students are correctly diagnosed and treated, after being given their options for treatment.

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