UCL Discovery
UCL home » Library Services » Electronic resources » UCL Discovery

Predicting relapse after antidepressant withdrawal – a systematic review

Berwian, IM; Walter, H; Seifritz, E; Huys, QJM; (2017) Predicting relapse after antidepressant withdrawal – a systematic review. Psychological Medicine , 47 (3) pp. 426-437. 10.1017/S0033291716002580. Green open access

[thumbnail of Huys-Gavric_Predicting relapse after antidepressant withdrawal - a systematic review_VoR.pdf]
Preview
Text
Huys-Gavric_Predicting relapse after antidepressant withdrawal - a systematic review_VoR.pdf - Published Version

Download (353kB) | Preview

Abstract

A substantial proportion of the burden of depression arises from its recurrent nature. The risk of relapse after antidepressant medication (ADM) discontinuation is high but not uniform. Predictors of individual relapse risk after antidepressant discontinuation could help to guide treatment and mitigate the long-term course of depression. We conducted a systematic literature search in PubMed to identify relapse predictors using the search terms ‘(depress* OR MDD*) AND (relapse* OR recurren*) AND (predict* OR risk) AND (discontinu* OR withdraw* OR maintenance OR maintain or continu*) AND (antidepress* OR medication OR drug)’ for published studies until November 2014. Studies investigating predictors of relapse in patients aged between 18 and 65 years with a main diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD), who remitted from a depressive episode while treated with ADM and were followed up for at least 6 months to assess relapse after part of the sample discontinued their ADM, were included in the review. Although relevant information is present in many studies, only 13 studies based on nine separate samples investigated predictors for relapse after ADM discontinuation. There are multiple promising predictors, including markers of true treatment response and the number of prior episodes. However, the existing evidence is weak and there are no established, validated markers of individual relapse risk after antidepressant cessation. There is little evidence to guide discontinuation decisions in an individualized manner beyond overall recurrence risk. Thus, there is a pressing need to investigate neurobiological markers of individual relapse risk, focusing on treatment discontinuation.

Type: Article
Title: Predicting relapse after antidepressant withdrawal – a systematic review
Location: England
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291716002580
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291716002580
Language: English
Additional information: © Cambridge University Press 2016. This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Keywords: Antidepressant discontinuation, major depressive disorder, prediction, relapse
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Division of Psychiatry
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10058589
Downloads since deposit
87Downloads
Download activity - last month
Download activity - last 12 months
Downloads by country - last 12 months

Archive Staff Only

View Item View Item