Korean J Psychopharmacol.  2005 Nov;16(6):443-454.

Psychopharmacologic Treatment of Depression in Patients with Medical Illness

• Lee BH
• Kim YK

Abstract

While in the past the almost sole availability of tricyclic antidepressants had limited antidepressant drug selection, newer drugs such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, bupropion, mirtazapine and venlafaxine have vastly simplified treating depression in patients with medical illness. Appropriate selection of an antidepressant agent in medically ill patients requires a careful risk-benefit assessment of the antidepressant treatment considering the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of drugs, potential for drug interaction, the patient's general medical conditions, and primary symptoms of the patient's depression. The effective and safe approach to antidepressant treatment is to reduce initial dosage, to titrate upward more slowly, and to monitor closely adverse effects in patients with medical illness.

Keyword

Medical illness; Depression; Antidepressant drug

MeSH Terms

Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic
Bupropion
Depression*
Drug Interactions
Humans
Risk Assessment
Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors
Venlafaxine Hydrochloride
Antidepressive Agents, Tricyclic
Bupropion
Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors