Antidepressants Not Effective for Some Types of Depression

Overall, the authors concluded that as the severity of depression increased, the effect of the antidepressant treatment increased. The authors noted a clinically significant difference with antidepressant treatment compared to placebo only in patients with baseline HDRS scores above 25, which indicates very severe depression. Treatment effects of antidepressants were negligible or nonexistent in patients with HDRS scores between 19 and 22 (severe depression) and less than 18 (mild to moderate depression). The authors speculate that any benefit from antidepressant therapy in mild to moderate depression may be due to the placebo effect.