Medication and suggestion in the treatment of depression

✍ Scribed by Irving Kirsch

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2005
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 177 KB
• Volume: 22
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0960-5290
• DOI: 10.1002/ch.24

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Concerns that SSRIs might increase suicide rates among depressed patients raise the question of whether the benefits of these medications warrant the risk they pose. Meta‐analyses of published and unpublished clinical trials reveal that the benef its of antidepressants over placebo are minimal. Most trials sponsored by the pharmaceutical company fail to show a significant advantage of SSRIs over inert placebo. Documents obtained from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reveal an explicit decision to keep this information from the public and from prescribing physicians. The data suggest that psychotherapy, especially augmented by hypnosis, may be a better choice for depressed individuals. Copyright © 2005 British Society of Experimental and Clinical Hypnosis