%0 Journal Article
%T Escitalopram tolerability as mono- versus augmentative therapy in patients with affective disorders: a naturalistic study
%A Dell'Osso B
%A Arici C
%A Dobrea C
%A Camuri G
%A Benatti B
%A Altamura AC
%J Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment
%D 2013
%I Dove Medical Press
%R http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S39322
%X citalopram tolerability as mono- versus augmentative therapy in patients with affective disorders: a naturalistic study Short Report (663) Total Article Views Authors: Dell'Osso B, Arici C, Dobrea C, Camuri G, Benatti B, Altamura AC Published Date February 2013 Volume 2013:9 Pages 205 - 209 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S39322 Received: 18 October 2012 Accepted: 20 December 2012 Published: 08 February 2013 Bernardo Dell¡¯Osso, Chiara Arici, Cristina Dobrea, Giulia Camuri, Beatrice Benatti, A Carlo Altamura University of Milan, Department of Psychiatry, Fondazione IRCSS Ca¡¯ Granda, Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milano, Italy Background: Escitalopram is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, widely used in the treatment of affective disorders. The purpose of this study was to examine its safety and tolerability, as mono- versus augmentative therapy, in a group of patients with affective disorders. Materials and methods: The sample consisted of 131 patients suffering from different affective disorders, including major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder, who received escitalopram for at least 4 weeks. Data were analyzed on the basis of mono- versus augmentative therapy, as well as age, gender, mean daily dosage, and patterns of combination therapy. Results: Sixty-seven (51.1%) patients were treated with monotherapy (mean dose of 11.76 mg/day) and 64 (48.9%) with augmentative escitalopram (mean dose of 12.81 mg/day). The mean duration of escitalopram treatment was 14 months. The most frequently combined compounds were: other antidepressants (36.5%), mood stabilizers (33.4%), and atypical antipsychotics (30.1%). Side effects were reported in 5.3% of the total sample and the most common were insomnia (2.3%), nausea (2.3%), and dizziness (0.8%). No significant difference, in terms of tolerability, in mono- versus augmentative therapy groups was found. In addition, neither age nor gender was significantly correlated with a greater presence of side effects. Finally, no significant correlation between dosage and side effects was observed. Conclusion: Over a 14-month observation period, escitalopram, either as monotherapy or an augmentative treatment, was found to be well tolerated in a large sample of patients with affective disorders, with an overall low rate of side effects.
%K affective disorders
%K escitalopram
%K tolerability
%K monotherapy
%K augmentative therapy
%U https://www.dovepress.com/escitalopram-tolerability-as-mono--versus-augmentative-therapy-in-pati-peer-reviewed-article-NDT