Systematic reports of antidepressant use in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) first appeared in the medical literature three decades ago. Recent meta-analyses of the cumulative controlled experience confirm the efficacy of antidepressants in IBS and other functional gastrointestinal disorders: only 3–4 patients require treatment to demonstrate a benefit over placebo—numbers indicating a solid trea...

Background and aims: Depression and anxiety are commonly reported among patients in opioid maintenance treatment (OMT). The aim of the present study was to describe aspects of prescription of antidepresant drug therapy among patients on OMT. Our research questions were: 1) What is the prevalence of antidepressant use according to age and gender? 2) Which antidepressants are used? 3) How are ant...

CONTEXT Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) is a chronic pain disorder associated with multiple debilitating symptoms and high disease-related costs. Effective treatment options are needed. OBJECTIVES To determine the efficacy of antidepressants in the treatment of FMS by performing a meta-analysis of randomized controlled clinical trials. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus, and the Cochrane Li...

BACKGROUND Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the most commonly prescribed antidepressants for the treatment of depression in patients with Parkinson's Disease (PD) but data on their efficacy are controversial. METHODS We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials to investigate the efficacy and acceptability of SSRIs in the treatment of d...

BACKGROUND Antidepressant-induced extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS) represent an underrecognized but important clinical entity. We reviewed the literature on new antidepressants and conducted an analysis of cases from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (AERS), which has not been published before. METHODS A literature review was conducted using PubMed, Ovid, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and the Cochrane...

Diabetes, a silent killer, is a leading cause of neuropathy. Around 50% of diabetic patients develop peripheral neuropathy in 25 years. Painful diabetic neuropathy manifests as burning, excruciating, stabbing or intractable type of pain or presents with tingling or numbness. The pathophysiology of this condition is due to primarily metabolic and vascular factors. There is increase in sorbitol a...

BACKGROUND Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) are commonly used orally for treating chronic pain states, such as neuropathic pain. TCAs produce analgesia by various mechanisms, including sodium channels, N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors, biogenic amines, opioids, inflammatory mediators, and substance P. Studies have shown that intrathecal tricyclic administration effectively attenuates pain and the...

Cover picture: Summation PET images of an untreated reference subject (left) and of a patient treated with an SSRI (citalopram, right), after intravenous injection of [ 11 C]MADAM. All previously published papers were reproduced with permission from the publisher. ABSTRACT The serotonin system has been implicated in major depression since the 1960s, mainly based on the serotonin enhancing prope...

BACKGROUND Epidemiologic studies have reported inconsistent findings regarding the association between the use of antidepressants and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) risk. We performed a meta-analysis to systematically assess the association between antidepressants and type 2 DM risk. METHODS We searched MEDLINE (PubMed), EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library (through Dec 31, 2011), including refere...