Science News about Medications

Scientists May Have Found Long-Pursued Binding Site for Antidepressants

Science Update • September 28, 2007

NIMH-funded scientists have a major new clue as to where the long-pursued binding site for commonly used antidepressants – potentially the site that triggers the medications’ effects – may be on brain cells.

Genes Linked to Suicidal Thinking During Antidepressant Treatment

Press Release • September 27, 2007

Specific variations in two genes are linked to suicidal thinking that sometimes occurs in people taking the most commonly prescribed class of antidepressants, according to a large study led by scientists at the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

Drops in SSRI prescription rates may coincide with increases in youth suicides

Science Update • September 19, 2007

A 2004 spike in suicide rates may have coincided with a drop in antidepressant prescriptions for youth, following warnings from U.S and European regulatory agencies that the medications might trigger suicidal thoughts.

Manic Phase of Bipolar Disorder Benefits from Breast Cancer Medication

Press Release • September 12, 2007

The medication tamoxifen, best known as a treatment for breast cancer, dramatically reduces symptoms of the manic phase of bipolar disorder more quickly than many standard medications for the mental illness, a new study shows.

Studies Refine Understanding of Treatments for Bipolar Disorder

Science Update • September 01, 2007

Two new studies provide additional details on best practices for treating people with bipolar disorder, a sometimes debilitating illness marked by severe mood swings between depression and mania.

Faster-Acting Antidepressants Closer to Becoming a Reality

Press Release • July 24, 2007

A new study has revealed more about how the medication ketamine, when used experimentally for depression, relieves symptoms of the disorder in hours instead of the weeks or months it takes for current antidepressants to work.

Improvement Following ADHD Treatment Sustained in Most Children

Press Release • July 20, 2007

Most children treated in a variety of ways for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) showed sustained improvement after three years in a major follow-up study funded by the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

New Study Will Examine Effects of Excluding Anti-anxiety Medications in Medicare Part D Coverage

Science Update • June 22, 2007

A new research grant funded by NIMH will examine the costs and benefits of excluding a commonly prescribed class of anti-anxiety medications—benzodiazepines—from coverage in the new Medicare Part D program. Medicare Part D, the prescription drug coverage plan for people insured by Medicare, went into effect in January 2006.

Gene Variants Linked to Suicidal Thoughts in Some Men Starting Antidepressant Treatment

Science Update • June 07, 2007

Some men who experience suicidal thoughts and behaviors after they first start taking antidepressant medications may be genetically predisposed to do so, according to the latest results from the NIMH-funded Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D) study

Antipsychotic Medications for Schizophrenia on Equal Footing in Improving Patients’ Thinking Skills

Science Update • June 04, 2007

Patients with schizophrenia taking antipsychotic medications experience a small improvement in thinking and reasoning skills (neurocognition), but no one medication appears to be better than the others in improving these skills during the first two crucial months of treatment, according to the latest results from the NIMH-funded Clinical Antipsychotic Trials for Intervention Effectiveness (CATIE).

Benefits of Antidepressants May Outweigh Risks for Kids

Science Update • April 17, 2007

The benefits of antidepressant medications likely outweigh their risks to children and adolescents with major depression and anxiety disorders, according to a new comprehensive review of pediatric trials conducted between 1988 and 2006. The study, partially funded by NIMH, was published in the April 18, 2007, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

HIV Treatment May Help Reduce Severity of Mental Impairment in Children with HIV Infection

Science Update • March 07, 2007

During the first few years of life, children born with HIV infection are most susceptible to central nervous system (CNS) disease, and can develop impaired cognitive, language, motor and behavioral functioning. However, NIH-funded researchers have found that among children with HIV infection, treatment with a protease inhibitor (PI)- based highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) helped protect against cognitive and motor difficulties compared to a control group of age-matched children who were born to HIV-infected mothers but who did not contract the virus themselves (e.g., HIV-exposed).

Global Use of ADHD Medications Rises Dramatically

Science Update • March 06, 2007

Global use of medications that treat attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) nearly tripled from 1993 to 2003, and spending on the drugs rose nine-fold, according to a study co-funded by NIMH and published in the March/April 2007 issue of Health Affairs.

New Details in Schizophrenia Treatment Trial Emerge

Press Release • March 01, 2007

Two new studies from the Clinical Antipsychotic Trials for Intervention Effectiveness (CATIE) provide more insights into comparing treatment options, and to what extent antipsychotic medications help people with schizophrenia learn social, interpersonal and community living skills.

Weight Gain From Antipsychotics Traced to Appetite-Regulating Enzyme, Receptor

Science Update • February 28, 2007

A likely mechanism by which antipsychotic medications trigger weight gain — with its attendant risks of heart disease, diabetes and treatment non-adherence — has been unraveled in mice by NIMH-funded scientists.

Older Medication May Be More Cost-Effective for Some Patients with Schizophrenia

Press Release • December 01, 2006

A new study analyzing the economic implications of the Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effectiveness (CATIE) concludes that the older (first generation) antipsychotic medication perphenazine was less expensive and no less effective than the newer (second generation) medications used in the trial during initial treatment, suggesting that older antipsychotics still have a role in treating schizophrenia.

New NIMH Research Strives to Understand How Antidepressants May Be Associated with Suicidal Thoughts and Actions

Science Update • November 13, 2006

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health, is funding five new research projects that will shed light on antidepressant medications, notably selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), and their association with suicidal thoughts and actions.

U.S. Youth Suicide Rates Lower in Counties with High SSRI Use

Science Update • November 08, 2006

For children ages five to 14, suicide rates from 1996 to 1998 were lower in areas of the country with higher rates of antidepressant prescriptions, according to an NIMH-funded study published in the November 2006 issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Odds of Beating Depression Diminish as Additional Treatment Strategies are Needed

Science Update • November 01, 2006

An overall assessment of the nation's largest real-world study of treatment-resistant depression suggests that a patient with persistent depression can get well after trying several treatment strategies, but his or her odds of beating the depression diminish as additional treatment strategies are needed.

Preschoolers with ADHD Improve with Low Doses of Medication

Press Release • October 16, 2006

The first long-term, large-scale study designed to determine the safety and effectiveness of treating preschoolers who have attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with methylphenidate (Ritalin) has found that overall, low doses of this medication are effective and safe.

Antipsychotic Medications Used to Treat Alzheimer’s Patients Found Lacking

Press Release • October 11, 2006

Commonly prescribed antipsychotic medications used to treat Alzheimer’s patients with delusions, aggression, hallucinations, and other similar symptoms can benefit some patients, but they appear to be no more effective than a placebo when adverse side effects are considered, according to the first phase of a large-scale clinical trial funded by NIMH.

NIMH Researchers Discover Medication’s Antidepressant Potential

Science Update • October 02, 2006

A commonly used sedative and motion-sickness treatment shows promise as a fast-acting antidepressant, according to a study conducted by researchers at NIMH.

New Schizophrenia Trial: Does Method of Administering Medication Make a Difference?

Science Update • September 05, 2006

A new clinical trial is testing whether an injection of a long-lasting antipsychotic medication every two weeks results in better adherence to treatment and better outcomes among people with schizophrenia than do oral medications taken daily.

Subsequent Treatment Strategies for Persistent Depression Yield Modest Results

Science Update • September 01, 2006

Patients with treatment-resistant depression had a modest chance of becoming symptom-free when they tried different treatment strategies after two or three failed treatments, according to results from the nation's largest real-world study of depression.

Experimental Medication Kicks Depression in Hours Instead of Weeks

Press Release • August 07, 2006

People with treatment—resistant depression experienced symptom relief in as little as two hours with a single intravenous dose of ketamine, a medication usually used in higher doses as an anesthetic in humans and animals, in a preliminary study.

Switching to a Third Antidepressant Medication May Prove Helpful to Some with Treatment-Resistant Depression

Science Update • July 01, 2006

The next wave of results from the nation's largest real-world study of treatment-resistant depressionshows that patients had a moderate chance of becoming symptom-free when they switched to a third antidepressant medication, following two previously unsuccessful medication attempts.

Antipsychotic Prescriptions Rise Sharply for Children and Adolescents

Science Update • June 19, 2006

The number of antipsychotic medication prescriptions for children and adolescents increased six-fold from 1993 to 2002, according to a study of visits made by people 20 years old and younger to doctors' offices.

Antidepressant Does Not Reduce Risk Of Relapse Among Patients With Anorexia Nervosa

Science Update • June 14, 2006

An NIMH-funded study has concluded that the antidepressant medication fluoxetine (Prozac) is no more effective than placebo in preventing relapse among patients with anorexia nervosa who had achieved a healthy weight during inpatient or day-program treatment.

Depression Rates Are Lower in Children Whose Mothers Are Successfully Treated

Science Update • May 09, 2006

When women treated for depression become symptom-free, their children are less likely to be diagnosed with depression, according to a study published in the March 22/29 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Studies Offer New Information About Treatment Choices for Schizophrenia — Phase 2 Results

Science Update • April 01, 2006

A national clinical trial comparing clozapine with other new-generation antipsychotic medications for the treatment of chronic schizophrenia has shown that people who switched to clozapine from their first medication because it failed to manage symptoms adequately were twice as likely to continue treatment as patients who switched to other antipsychotic medications.