Effects of maintenance amitriptyline and psychotherapy on symptoms of depression

Depressives responding to initial treatment were maintained on amitriptyline for eight months, withdrawn double-blind to placebo after two months, or withdrawn overtly onto no medication. In each group half the patients received weekly psychotherapy and half were seen once monthly. Effects on symptom ratings were examined. Maintenance amitriptyline gave a significant advantage over early withdrawal in preventing symptom recrudescence. There were no differences between double-blind or overt withdrawal. There were no interactions between drug withdrawal and psychotherapy. Psychotherapy produced no significant advantages over low contact on symptoms, although it did improve social adjustment ratings reported elsewhere.