Reduction in suicidal ideation with SSRIs: a review of 459 depressed patients

This paper is a review of 459 outpatients treated in double-blind clinical drug trials using similar protocols which compared the clinical responses to specific serotonin reuptake inhibitors, norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, mixed norepinephrine serotonin reuptake inhibitors, serotonin-2 antagonists and placebo. Although improvements in the total score on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression did not differ significantly among the groups, there were differences in the profile of response based on analysis of the items of the scale. The most striking difference was the significantly more rapid and effective improvement in depressed mood and the lessening of suicidal ideation among the patients treated with specific serotonin reuptake inhibitors.