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Many Elderly With MDD Do Not Respond to Meds, But…

…some do, and severity level is not the only factor

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Patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who have late-life depression with high baseline severity are not likely to respond to treatment. However, some do respond, and factors other than severity contribute to nonresponse. This according to data derived from a 12-week open label trial of venlafaxine hydrochloride, involving 453 patients aged 60 years or older with MDD. Researchers found:

• Three groups of patients responded to therapy:

– 69 with the lowest baseline severity had a rapid response.
– 108 who had moderate baseline symptoms.
– 25 with higher baseline symptoms.

• In addition to baseline severity, factors associated with nonresponse included:

– episode duration.
– less subjective sleep loss.
– more guilt.

• more work/activity impairment.

• Higher delayed memory performance was also linked to rapid response.

Citation: Smagula S, Butters M, Anderson S, et al. Antidepressant response trajectories and associated clinical prognostic factors among older adults. JAMA Psychiatry. 2015; August 19, 2015. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2015.1324.

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