The study is the first to compare an older antidepressant with a newer generation serotonin only-based drug and placebo in patients with Parkinson's disease and depression.

For the study, 52 patients with Parkinson's disease and depression were given either nortriptyline, paroxetine CR, or a placebo. Patients were tested for improvement of depression symptoms at 2, 4, and 8 weeks after starting treatment.

The study found that the people who took nortriptyline were nearly 5 times more likely to see improvement in depression symptoms when compared with the people who took paroxetine CR.

"I think that this study shows a number of important things. First, that people with Parkinson's disease can respond to antidepressants. This is important because depression in Parkinson's disease is underrecognised, underappreciated and undertreated," said study author Matthew Menza, MD, UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, New Jersey.

"Second, the study suggests that we may need to use medications that affect both serotonin and norepinephrine, not just serotonin, in the brain to be successful in treating depression related to Parkinson's disease."

SOURCE: American Academy of Neurology

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