Support and undermining in interpersonal relationships are associated with symptom improvement in a trial of antidepressant medication.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships of chronic stress, social undermining, and social support with symptom reduction and remission in depressed patients treated with antidepressant medication (citalopram), and to determine whether these relationships were moderated by ethnicity. A sample of 301 treatment-seeking adult patients with non-psychotic depression, including 169 African American and 132 Caucasian men and women, were enrolled in an eight week, dose-escalation clinical trial. Intent-to-treat analyses indicated that, consistent with expectations, more baseline social support was associated with greater symptom reduction and higher likelihood of remission, especially at higher levels of social undermining.

Religiosity and treatment response to antidepressant medication: A prospective multi-site clinical trial.

The present study examined the relationship between religiosity/spirituality and treatment response to antidepressant medication (citalopram). One-hundred and forty-eight Caucasian and African-American adults with uncomplicated major depression were treated with citalopram (20-60mg/day) over an 8-week period in a prospective multi-site clinical trial. Treatment response was assessed weekly with the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression.

Ethnic differences in antidepressant response: a prospective multi-site clinical trial.

Background: Although depression is a highly prevalent condition that occurs in all ethnic groups, the influence of ethnicity on treatment response still remains unclear.

Methods: A prospective 8-week, open-label clinical trial comparing the efficacy and side effects of citalopram (CIT) with dose escalation (20-60 mg/day) was performed in African-Americans and Caucasians with nonpsychotic major depression. The intent-to-treat sample consisted of 301 participants (169 African-Americans and 132 Caucasians).