Our systematic review in BMC Psychiatry concluded that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors ( SSRIs ) compared with placebo significantly increase the risk of serious adverse events ( SAEs ) in patients with major depression and the potential beneficial effects of SSRIs seem to be outweighed by the harms .
In their post-hoc analysis of our data , they reported that SSRIs only increase the risk of SAEs in elderly and seems safe for non-elderly patients .
An examination of the sensitivity of the six-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression in a sample of patients suffering from major depressive disorder.
OBJECTIVES To compare the sensitivity of the 6-item  Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression  ( HRSD6 ) with the more widely used 17-item  Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression  ( HRSD17 ) in patients suffering from major depressive disorder , with or without melancholia and /or dysthymic disorder . A secondary objective was to compare the sensitivity of the HRSD6 to the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale ( MADRS ) . DESIGN Retrospective analysis of 4 clinical trials that tested antidepressant therapies . SETTING Outpatient treatment in a major psychiatric hospital . PARTICIPANTS One hundred and forty-three male and female out patients meeting the criteria of the DSM-III-R or DSM-IV for major depressive disorder . OUTCOME MEASURES HRSD17 , HRSD6 and MADRS . RESULTS The HRSD6 correlated strongly with the HRSD17 , both at baseline and termination of treatment , and for the subgroups of double depression and melancholia . The HRSD6 was also correlated significantly with the MADRS at both measurement times , and for the subgroups . Paired t-tests with the HRSD6 , HRSD17 and MADRS demonstrated equal sensitivity to change over the course of treatment , both in the full sample and in the dysthymic and melancholic subgroups . CONCLUSIONS The HRSD6 appears to be as sensitive to change over treatment as the HRSD17 and the MADRS . A shorter , less time-consuming measure of depression may have utility in clinical practice and research
Our systematic review in BMC Psychiatry concluded that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors ( SSRIs ) compared with placebo significantly increase the risk of serious adverse events ( SAEs ) in patients with major depression and the potential beneficial effects of SSRIs seem to be outweighed by the harms .
In their post-hoc analysis of our data , they reported that SSRIs only increase the risk of SAEs in elderly and seems safe for non-elderly patients .