4,717
Views
80
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Review Article

Evidence-based pharmacotherapy of treatment-resistant unipolar depression

&
Pages 13-23 | Received 30 Dec 2015, Accepted 12 Oct 2016, Published online: 16 Nov 2016

References

  • Adli M, Baethge C, Heinz A, Langlitz N, Bauer M. 2005. Is dose escalation of antidepressants a rational strategy after a medium-dose treatment has failed? A systematic review. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 255:387–400.
  • Adli M, Pilhatsch M, Bauer M, Koberle U, Ricken R, Janssen G, Ulrich S, Bschor T. 2008. Safety of high-intensity treatment with the irreversible monoamine oxidase inhibitor tranylcypromine in patients with treatment-resistant depression. Pharmacopsychiatry. 41:252–257.
  • Amsterdam JD, Berwish NJ. 1989. High dose tranylcypromine therapy for refractory depression. Pharmacopsychiatry. 22:21–25.
  • APA. 2010. Practice guideline for the treatment of patients with major depressive disorder, 3rd ed. Arlington (VA): American Psychiatric Association (APA).
  • Appelberg BG, Syvalahti EK, Koskinen TE, Mehtonen OP, Muhonen TT, Naukkarinen HH. 2001. Patients with severe depression may benefit from buspirone augmentation of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors: results from a placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind, placebo wash-in study. J Clin Psychiatry. 62:448–452.
  • Aronson R, Offman HJ, Joffe RT, Naylor CD. 1996. Triiodothyronine augmentation in the treatment of refractory depression. A meta-analysis. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 53:842–848.
  • Balestri M, Calati R, Souery D, Kautzky A, Kasper S, Montgomery S, Zohar J, Mendlewicz J, Serretti A. 2016. Socio-demographic and clinical predictors of treatment resistant depression: a prospective European multicenter study. J Affect Disord. 189:224–232.
  • Ballesteros J, Callado LF. 2004. Effectiveness of pindolol plus serotonin uptake inhibitors in depression: a meta-analysis of early and late outcomes from randomised controlled trials. J Affect Disord. 79:137–147.
  • Barbee JG, Thompson TR, Jamhour NJ, Stewart JW, Conrad EJ, Reimherr FW, Thompson PM, Shelton RC. 2011. A double-blind placebo-controlled trial of lamotrigine as an antidepressant augmentation agent in treatment-refractory unipolar depression. J Clin Psychiatry. 72:1405–1412.
  • Barbosa L, Berk M, Vorster M. 2003. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of augmentation with lamotrigine or placebo in patients concomitantly treated with fluoxetine for resistant major depressive episodes. J Clin Psychiatry. 64:403–407.
  • Bauer M, Adli M, Ricken R, Severus E, Pilhatsch M. 2014. Role of lithium augmentation in the management of major depressive disorder. CNS Drugs. 28:331–342.
  • Bauer M, Dell'Osso L, Kasper S, Pitchot W, Dencker Vansvik E, Köhler J, Jørgensen L, Montgomery SA. 2013a. Extended-release quetiapine fumarate (quetiapine XR) monotherapy and quetiapine XR or lithium as add-on to antidepressants in patients with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder. J Affect Disord. 151:209–219.
  • Bauer M, El-Khalili N, Datto C, Szamosi J, Eriksson H. 2010. A pooled analysis of two randomised, placebo-controlled studies of extended release quetiapine fumarate adjunctive to antidepressant therapy in patients with major depressive disorder. J Affect Disord. 127:19–30.
  • Bauer M, Goetz T, Glenn T, Whybrow PC. 2008. The thyroid-brain interaction in thyroid disorders and mood disorders. J Neuroendocrinol. 20:1101–1114.
  • Bauer M, Pfennig A, Severus E, Whybrow PC, Angst J, Moller HJ, et al. 2013b. World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry (WFSBP) guidelines for biological treatment of unipolar depressive disorders, Part 1: update 2013 on the acute and continuation treatment of unipolar depressive disorders. World J Biol Psychiatry. 14:334–385.
  • Bauer M, Severus E, Kohler S, Whybrow PC, Angst J, Moller HJ, et al. 2015. World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry (WFSBP) guidelines for biological treatment of unipolar depressive disorders. Part 2: maintenance treatment of major depressive disorder-update 2015. World J Biol Psychiatry. 16:76–95.
  • Benkert O, Szegedi A, Wetzel H, Staab HJ, Meister W, Philipp M. 1997. Dose escalation vs. continued doses of paroxetine and maprotiline: a prospective study in depressed out-patients with inadequate treatment response. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 95:288–296.
  • Bennabi D, Aouizerate B, El-Hage W, Doumy O, Moliere F, Courtet P, Nieto I, Bellivier F, Bubrovsky M, Vaiva G, et al. 2015. Risk factors for treatment resistance in unipolar depression: a systematic review. J Affect Disord. 171:137–141.
  • Blier P, Ward HE, Tremblay P, Laberge L, Hebert C, Bergeron R. 2010. Combination of antidepressant medications from treatment initiation for major depressive disorder: a double-blind randomized study. Am J Psychiatry. 167:281–288.
  • Brecht S, Desaiah D, Marechal ES, Santini AM, Podhorna J, Guelfi JD. 2011. Efficacy and safety of duloxetine 60 mg and 120 mg daily in patients hospitalized for severe depression: a double-blind randomized trial. J Clin Psychiatry. 72:1086–1094.
  • Bromet E, Andrade LH, Hwang I, Sampson NA, Alonso J, de Girolamo G, et al. 2011. Cross-national epidemiology of DSM-IV major depressive episode. BMC Med. 9:90
  • Bschor T, Baethge C. 2010. No evidence for switching the antidepressant: systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs of a common therapeutic strategy. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 121:174–179.
  • Bschor T, Bauer M, Adli M. 2014. Chronic and treatment resistant depression: diagnosis and stepwise therapy. Dtsch Arztebl Int. 111:766–775.
  • Cipriani A, Furukawa TA, Salanti G, Geddes JR, Higgins JP, Churchill R, Watanabe N, Nakagawa A, Omori IM, McGuire H, et al. 2009. Comparative efficacy and acceptability of 12 new-generation antidepressants: a multiple-treatments meta-analysis. Lancet. 373:746–758.
  • Cipriani A, Hawton K, Stockton S, Geddes JR. 2013. Lithium in the prevention of suicide in mood disorders: updated systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ. 346:f3646.
  • Connolly KR, Thase ME. 2011. If at first you don't succeed: a review of the evidence for antidepressant augmentation, combination and switching strategies. Drugs. 71:43–64.
  • Crossley NA, Bauer M. 2007. Acceleration and augmentation of antidepressants with lithium for depressive disorders: two meta-analyses of randomized, placebo-controlled trials. J Clin Psychiatry. 68:935–940.
  • Dold M, Kautzky A, Bartova L, Souery D, Mendlewicz J, Serretti A, et al. 2015. Psychopharmakologische Behandlungsstrategien bei unipolarer Depression an europäischen Universitätskliniken – eine pharmakoepidemiologische multizentrische Querschnittsstudie [in German]. Poster presented at the DGPPN congress, Berlin, Germany, 25–28.11.2015.
  • Dold M, Leucht S. 2014. Pharmacotherapy of treatment-resistant schizophrenia: a clinical perspective. Evid Based Ment Health. 17:33–37.
  • Dornseif BE, Dunlop SR, Potvin JH, Wernicke JF. 1989. Effect of dose escalation after low-dose fluoxetine therapy. Psychopharmacol Bull. 25:71–79.
  • Fava GA, Gatti A, Belaise C, Guidi J, Offidani E. 2015. Withdrawal symptoms after selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor discontinuation: a systematic review. Psychother Psychosom. 84:72–81.
  • Fava M, Wisniewski SR, Thase ME, Baker RA, Tran QV, Pikalov A, Yang H, Marcus RN, Berman RM. 2009. Metabolic assessment of aripiprazole as adjunctive therapy in major depressive disorder: a pooled analysis of 2 studies. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 29:362–367.
  • Galling B, Calsina Ferrer A, Abi Zeid Daou M, Sangroula D, Hagi K, Correll CU. 2015. Safety and tolerability of antidepressant co-treatment in acute major depressive disorder: results from a systematic review and exploratory meta-analysis. Expert Opin Drug Saf. 14:1587–1608.
  • Gardner DM, Murphy AL, O’Donnell H, Centorrino F, Baldessarini RJ. 2010. International consensus study of antipsychotic dosing. Am J Psychiatry. 167:686–693.
  • Gerhard T, Akincigil A, Correll CU, Foglio NJ, Crystal S, Olfson M. 2014. National trends in second-generation antipsychotic augmentation for nonpsychotic depression. J Clin Psychiatry. 75:490–497.
  • Hamilton M. 1960. A rating scale for depression. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 23:56–62.
  • Hiemke C, Baumann P, Bergemann N, Conca A, Dietmaier O, Egberts K, Fric M, Gerlach M, Greiner C, Gründer G, et al. 2011. AGNP consensus guidelines for therapeutic drug monitoring in psychiatry: update 2011. Pharmacopsychiatry. 44:195–235.
  • Hieronymus F, Nilsson S, Eriksson H. 2015. A mega-analysis of fixed-dose trials reveals dose-dependency, a rapid onset of action and a respectable effect size for the symptom-reducing effect of SSRIs in adult major depression. Poster presented at the IFMAD, Prague, Czech Republic, 02–04.12.2015.
  • Holma KM, Haukka J, Suominen K, Valtonen HM, Mantere O, Melartin TK, Sokero TP, Oquendo MA, Isometsä ET. 2014. Differences in incidence of suicide attempts between bipolar I and II disorders and major depressive disorder. Bipolar Disord. 16:652–661.
  • Kasper S, Akimova E. 2013. The role of atypical antipsychotics in inadequate-response and treatment-resistant depression. In: Kasper S, Montgomery S, editors. Treatment-resistant depression. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell; p. 107–128.
  • Kasper S, Montgomery S. 2013. Treatment-resistant depression. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
  • Kato M, Chang CM. 2013. Augmentation treatments with second-generation antipsychotics to antidepressants in treatment-resistant depression. CNS Drugs. 27:S11–S19.
  • Kessing LV, Sondergard L, Kvist K, Andersen PK. 2005. Suicide risk in patients treated with lithium. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 62:860–866.
  • Kessler RC, Berglund P, Demler O, Jin R, Koretz D, Merikangas KR, Rush AJ, Walters EE, Wang PS; National Comorbidity Survey Replication. 2003. The epidemiology of major depressive disorder: results from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R). JAMA. 289:3095–3105.
  • Konstantinidis A, Papageorgiou K, Grohmann R, Horvath A, Engel R, Kasper S. 2012. Increase of antipsychotic medication in depressive inpatients from 2000 to 2007: results from the AMSP international pharmacovigilance program. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 15:449–457.
  • Kovess-Masfety V, Alonso J, Angermeyer M, Bromet E, de Girolamo G, de Jonge P, Demyttenaere K, Florescu SE, Gruber MJ, Gureje O, et al. 2013. Irritable mood in adult major depressive disorder: results from the world mental health surveys. Depress Anxiety. 30:395–406.
  • Landen M, Bjorling G, Agren H, Fahlen T. 1998. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of buspirone in combination with an SSRI in patients with treatment-refractory depression. J Clin Psychiatry. 59:664–668.
  • Lenze EJ, Mulsant BH, Blumberger DM, Karp JF, Newcomer JW, Anderson SJ, et al. 2015. Efficacy, safety, and tolerability of augmentation pharmacotherapy with aripiprazole for treatment-resistant depression in late life: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet. 386:2404–2412.
  • Licht RW, Qvitzau S. 2002. Treatment strategies in patients with major depression not responding to first-line sertraline treatment. A randomised study of extended duration of treatment, dose increase or mianserin augmentation. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 161:143–151.
  • Lopes Rocha F, Fuzikawa C, Riera R, Ramos MG, Hara C. 2013. Antidepressant combination for major depression in incomplete responders – a systematic review. J Affect Disord. 144:1–6.
  • McKnight RF, Adida M, Budge K, Stockton S, Goodwin GM, Geddes JR. 2012. Lithium toxicity profile: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet. 379:721–728.
  • Meyer JH, Wilson AA, Sagrati S, Hussey D, Carella A, Potter WZ, Ginovart N, Spencer EP, Cheok A, Houle S. 2004. Serotonin transporter occupancy of five selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors at different doses: an [11C]DASB positron emission tomography study. Am J Psychiatry. 161:826–835.
  • Mischoulon D, Witte J, Levy M, Papakostas GI, Pet LR, Hsieh WH, Pencina MJ, Ward S, Pollack MH, Fava M. 2012. Efficacy of dose increase among nonresponders to low-dose aripiprazole augmentation in patients with inadequate response to antidepressant treatment: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, efficacy trial. J Clin Psychiatry. 73:353–357.
  • Mohamed S, Leslie DL, Rosenheck RA. 2009. Use of antipsychotics in the treatment of major depressive disorder in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. J Clin Psychiatry. 70:906–912.
  • Montgomery SA, Asberg M. 1979. A new depression scale designed to be sensitive to change. Br J Psychiatry. 134:382–389.
  • Montgomery SA, Baldwin DS, Blier P, Fineberg NA, Kasper S, Lader M, Lam RW, Lépine JP, Möller HJ, Nutt DJ, et al. 2007. Which antidepressants have demonstrated superior efficacy? A review of the evidence. Int Clin Psychopharmacol. 22:323–329.
  • Montgomery SA, Nielsen RZ, Poulsen LH, Häggström L. 2014. A randomised, double-blind study in adults with major depressive disorder with an inadequate response to a single course of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor or serotonin–noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor treatment switched to vortioxetine or agomelatine. Hum Psychopharmacol. 29:470–482.
  • Nelson JC, Baumann P, Delucchi K, Joffe R, Katona C. 2014. A systematic review and meta-analysis of lithium augmentation of tricyclic and second generation antidepressants in major depression. J Affect Disord. 168:269–275.
  • Nelson JC, Papakostas GI. 2009. Atypical antipsychotic augmentation in major depressive disorder: a meta-analysis of placebo-controlled randomized trials. Am J Psychiatry. 166:980–991.
  • Nelson JC, Thase ME, Bellocchio EE, Rollin LM, Eudicone JM, McQuade RD, Marcus RN, Berman RM, Baker RA. 2012. Efficacy of adjunctive aripiprazole in patients with major depressive disorder who showed minimal response to initial antidepressant therapy. Int Clin Psychopharmacol. 27:125–133.
  • NICE. 2009. Depression in adults: the treatment and management of depression in adults. National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health.
  • Nierenberg AA, Fava M, Trivedi MH, Wisniewski SR, Thase ME, McGrath PJ, Alpert JE, Warden D, Luther JF, Niederehe G, et al. 2006. A comparison of lithium and T(3) augmentation following two failed medication treatments for depression: a STAR*D report. Am J Psychiatry. 163:1519–1530.
  • Otuyelu E, Foldvari A, Szabo E, Sipos V, Edafiogho P, Szucs M, Dome P, Rihmer Z, Sandor J. 2015. Antidepressant drugs and teenage suicide in Hungary: time trend and seasonality analysis. Int J Psychiatry Clin Pract. 19:221–225.
  • Papakostas GI, Fava M, Baer L, Swee MB, Jaeger A, Bobo WV, Shelton RC. 2015. Ziprasidone augmentation of escitalopram for major depressive disorder: efficacy results from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Am J Psychiatry. 172:1251–1258.
  • Papakostas GI, Fava M, Thase ME. 2008. Treatment of SSRI-resistant depression: a meta-analysis comparing within-versus across-class switches. Biol Psychiatry. 63:699–704.
  • Petersen T, Papakostas GI, Posternak MA, Kant A, Guyker WM, Iosifescu DV, Yeung AS, Nierenberg AA, Fava M. 2005. Empirical testing of two models for staging antidepressant treatment resistance. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 25:336–341.
  • Rocha FL, Fuzikawa C, Riera R, Hara C. 2012. Combination of antidepressants in the treatment of major depressive disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 32:278–281.
  • Rombold F, Lauterbach E, Felber W, Mueller-Oerlinghausen B, Ahrens B, Bronisch T, Kilb B, Lewitzka U, Richter K, Broocks A, et al. 2014. Adjunctive lithium treatment in the prevention of suicidal behavior in patients with depression and comorbid personality disorders. Int J Psychiatry Clin Pract. 18:300–303.
  • Romera I, Perez V, Menchon JM, Schacht A, Papen R, Neuhauser D, Abbar M, Svanborg P, Gilaberte I. 2012. Early switch strategy in patients with major depressive disorder: a double-blind, randomized study. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 32:479–486.
  • Ruhe HG, Booij J, v Weert HC, Reitsma JB, Franssen EJ, Michel MC, Schene AH. 2009. Evidence why paroxetine dose escalation is not effective in major depressive disorder: a randomized controlled trial with assessment of serotonin transporter occupancy. Neuropsychopharmacology. 34:999–1010.
  • Rush AJ, Trivedi MH, Stewart JW, Nierenberg AA, Fava M, Kurian BT, Warden D, Morris DW, Luther JF, Husain MM, et al. 2011. Combining medications to enhance depression outcomes (CO-MED): acute and long-term outcomes of a single-blind randomized study. Am J Psychiatry. 168:689–701.
  • Rush AJ, Trivedi MH, Wisniewski SR, Stewart JW, Nierenberg AA, Thase ME, Ritz L, Biggs MM, Warden D, Luther JF, et al. 2006. Bupropion-SR, sertraline, or venlafaxine-XR after failure of SSRIs for depression. N Engl J Med. 354:1231–1242.
  • Santos MA, Rocha FL, Hara C. 2008. Efficacy and safety of antidepressant augmentation with lamotrigine in patients with treatment-resistant depression: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study. Prim Care Companion J Clin Psychiatry. 10:187–190.
  • Schweizer E, Rynn M, Mandos LA, Demartinis N, Garcia-Espana F, Rickels K. 2001. The antidepressant effect of sertraline is not enhanced by dose titration: results from an outpatient clinical trial. Int Clin Psychopharmacol. 16:137–143.
  • Shine B, McKnight RF, Leaver L, Geddes JR. 2015. Long-term effects of lithium on renal, thyroid, and parathyroid function: a retrospective analysis of laboratory data. Lancet. 386:461–468.
  • Souery D, Amsterdam J, de Montigny C, Lecrubier Y, Montgomery S, Lipp O, et al. 1999. Treatment resistant depression: methodological overview and operational criteria. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol. 9:83–91.
  • Souery D, Oswald P, Massat I, Bailer U, Bollen J, Demyttenaere K, Kasper S, Lecrubier Y, Montgomery S, Serretti A, et al. 2007. Clinical factors associated with treatment resistance in major depressive disorder: results from a European multicenter study. J Clin Psychiatry. 68:1062–1070.
  • Souery D, Papakostas GI, Trivedi MH. 2006. Treatment-resistant depression. J Clin Psychiatry. 67:16–22.
  • Souery D, Serretti A, Calati R, Oswald P, Massat I, Konstantinidis A, Linotte S, Bollen J, Demyttenaere K, Kasper S, et al. 2011a. Switching antidepressant class does not improve response or remission in treatment-resistant depression. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 31:512–516.
  • Souery D, Serretti A, Calati R, Oswald P, Massat I, Konstantinidis A, Linotte S, Kasper S, Montgomery S, Zohar J, Mendlewicz J. 2011b. Citalopram versus desipramine in treatment resistant depression: effect of continuation or switching strategies: a randomized open study. World J Biol Psychiatry. 12:364–375.
  • Spielmans GI, Berman MI, Linardatos E, Rosenlicht NZ, Perry A, Tsai AC. 2013. Adjunctive atypical antipsychotic treatment for major depressive disorder: a meta-analysis of depression, quality of life, and safety outcomes. PLoS Med. 10:e1001403.
  • Sugawara H, Sakamoto K, Harada T, Ishigooka J. 2010. Predictors of efficacy in lithium augmentation for treatment-resistant depression. J Affect Disord. 125:165–168.
  • Thase ME, Rush AJ. 1997. When at first you don’t succeed: sequential strategies for antidepressant nonresponders. J Clin Psychiatry. 58:23–29.
  • Thase ME, Youakim JM, Skuban A, Hobart M, Augustine C, Zhang P, McQuade RD, Carson WH, Nyilas M, Sanchez R, Eriksson H. 2015. Efficacy and safety of adjunctive brexpiprazole 2 mg in major depressive disorder: a phase 3, randomized, placebo-controlled study in patients with inadequate response to antidepressants. J Clin Psychiatry. 76:1224–1231.
  • Trivedi MH, Fava M, Wisniewski SR, Thase ME, Quitkin F, Warden D, Ritz L, Nierenberg AA, Lebowitz BD, Biggs MM, et al. 2006a. Medication augmentation after the failure of SSRIs for depression. N Engl J Med. 354:1243–1252.
  • Trivedi MH, Rush AJ, Wisniewski SR, Nierenberg AA, Warden D, Ritz L, Norquist G, Howland RH, Lebowitz B, McGrath PJ, et al. 2006b. Evaluation of outcomes with citalopram for depression using measurement-based care in STAR*D: implications for clinical practice. Am J Psychiatry. 163:28–40.
  • Turner P, Kantaria R, Young AH. 2014. A systematic review and meta-analysis of the evidence base for add-on treatment for patients with major depressive disorder who have not responded to antidepressant treatment: a European perspective. J Psychopharmacol. 28:85–98.
  • Wang HR, Woo YS, Ahn HS, Ahn IM, Kim HJ, Bahk WM. 2015. Can atypical antipsychotic augmentation reduce subsequent treatment failure more effectively among depressed patients with a higher degree of treatment resistance? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 18:pyv023.
  • WHO. 2001. World Health Report 2001. Mental health – new understanding, new hope. Genf: World Health Organisation.
  • Wiethoff K, Bauer M, Baghai TC, Moller HJ, Fisher R, Hollinde D, Kiermeir J, Hauth I, Laux G, Cordes J, et al. 2010. Prevalence and treatment outcome in anxious versus nonanxious depression: results from the German Algorithm Project. J Clin Psychiatry. 71:1047–1054.
  • Wittchen HU, Jacobi F, Rehm J, Gustavsson A, Svensson M, Jonsson B, Olesen J, Allgulander C, Alonso J, Faravelli C, et al. 2011. The size and burden of mental disorders and other disorders of the brain in Europe 2010. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol. 21:655–679.
  • Zhou XP, Keitner GIP, Qin BM, Ravindran AVP, Bauer MP, Del Giovane CP, Zhao J, Liu Y, Fang Y, Zhang Y, Xie P. 2015. Atypical antipsychotic augmentation for treatment-resistant depression: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 18:pyv060.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.