For older people with mild depression, antidepressant medication improves symptoms better and faster than counseling or placebos, concluded the authors of an article published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association . However, patients' overall improvement was modest after an 11-week course of medication, leading the authors to recommend a cautious approach to treating mild depression in elders. Wayne Katon, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences , and Mark Sullivan, an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, co-wrote the article. Patients with major depression experience a low mood and lack of pleasure in nearly all activities for at least two weeks, as well as many other symptoms. Minor depression also impairs people's ability to function in everyday life, but symptoms are fewer.
Dysthymia is a chronic low-grade depression.
The patients reported more bad days than good over the previous two years or more. Katon and his colleagues said they believe doctors should carefully assess the severity of each patient's symptoms and the degree of functional impairment before considering a trial of antidepressant treatment. However, the researchers said this is not a recommendation to do nothing.