There were no other statistically significant differences between lithium and antidepressants according to all other outcomes considered .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS There was adequate efficacy evidence for lithium or antidepressants preventing relapse in unipolar affective disorder , however their relative efficacy was unknown .
BACKGROUND The main rationale for the use of lithium in the long-term treatment of unipolar affective disorder is its efficacy in treating bipolar affective disorder and resistant depression .
However , there is considerable uncertainty about which pharmacological intervention is most effective in the long-term treatment of recurrent unipolar affective disorder .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of lithium versus antidepressants for the long-term treatment of recurrent affective disorder .
THE EFFECT OF LITHIUM CARBONATE IN COMBINATION WITH TRICYCLIC ANTIDEPRESSANTS IN ENDOGENOUS DEPRESSION: A double‐blind, multicenter trial
Forty‐five endogenously depressed patients in nine different hospitals were given , r and omly , tricyclic antidepressants plus placebo , or tricyclic antidepressants plus lithium carbonate , for a minimum of 4 weeks . At the hospital with the largest single material , the six patients in the lithium group showed significantly greater improvement after 1 and 4 weeks than the seven patients in the placebo group . At the other hospitals , a total of 14 patients received lithium and 18 placebo , with no significant difference in outcome . However , the heterogeneity of this part of the material might easily have obscured any real difference in treatment outcome . Treatment response in the total material did not correlate significantly with diagnosis ( e.g. , whether unipolar or bipolar affective illness ) , age or sex . No significant side effects were reported
There were no other statistically significant differences between lithium and antidepressants according to all other outcomes considered .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS There was adequate efficacy evidence for lithium or antidepressants preventing relapse in unipolar affective disorder , however their relative efficacy was unknown .
BACKGROUND The main rationale for the use of lithium in the long-term treatment of unipolar affective disorder is its efficacy in treating bipolar affective disorder and resistant depression .
However , there is considerable uncertainty about which pharmacological intervention is most effective in the long-term treatment of recurrent unipolar affective disorder .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of lithium versus antidepressants for the long-term treatment of recurrent affective disorder .