Choosing an antidepressant to treat depression

Depression refers to both a symptom and a potentially life-threatening illness. Most patients with depression are seen by primary care physicians. Antidepressant medications are effective in up to 85 percent of patients with major depression. Most antidepressants tend to be equally effective. Drug selection is usually based on minimizing or taking advantage of certain side effects, including sedation and anticholinergic and cardiovascular effects. Some characteristics of patients, such as suicide potential, pregnancy, age and medical illness, also affect the choice of drug.