Source: DGNews  |  Posted 4 years ago

By Alison Palkhivala

MONTREAL, CANADA -- November 20, 2007 -- Escitalopram is as effective in a real-world general-practice setting for the treatment of major depressive disorder as it has been shown to be in clinical trials, according to a poster presented here at the 57th Annual Conference of the Canadian Psychiatric Association (CPA).

In collaboration with Lundbeck, Canada, Inc., researchers carried out a 24-week, open-label study in which general and family physicians treated their patients with major depressive disorder with a 10 to 20 mg daily of escitalopram.

Dr. Chokka, Associate Clinical Professor, University of Alberta, Psychiatrist, Grey Nuns Hospital, Edmonton, Albert, Canada, presented the study findings on November 16.

The primary measure of efficacy was the change in the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). Changes in quality of life were also measured using the San Francisco-36 (SF-36) Health Survey.

Among the 647 patients enrolled in the trial, 461 (71%) completed 24 weeks of treatment. The most common reason for discontinuing treatment was the presence of adverse events (10%). Another 4% of patients discontinued treatment due to lack of efficacy.

Escitalopram therapy was found to be effective in this naturalistic setting. The baseline MADRS score decreased from a mean of 30.7 at baseline to 11.1 at endpoint. Among patients who completed treatment, 78% of patients responded to treatment, defined as at least a 50% decrease in MADRS score, and 71% entered remission, defined as a MADRS score of 12 or less.

Quality of life also improved with escitalopram therapy. The mean SF-36 score increased from 39.4 at baseline to 67.9 at endpoint. Improvements were seen in all dimensions of quality of life, according to the researchers.

"These data support a close correspondence between the efficacy of escitalopram observed in randomised controlled trials and the effectiveness of escitalopram in a real-world clinical setting," write the authors of the poster.

Lundbeck manufactures escitalopram under the trade names Cipralex(R)/ Lexapro(R)/ Seroplex(R)/ Sipralex(R).

[Presentation title: An Open-Label Naturalistic Study of Escitalopram for the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) in Canadian Primary Care Settings. Poster P21]