Health
Lower socioeconomic status may reduce antidepressants' effectiveness
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Dec. 3, 2007
African-Americans and Hispanics are less likely to respond to medication for depression, but this may result from social status and economic issues rather than race, according to a study published in the November Medical Care.
Researchers analyzed data of the Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression study, a large investigation of treatment-resistant depression. African-Americans and Hispanics were less likely to respond to medications than Caucasians, but the differences narrowed after adjusting for income, insurance status and education level. The authors are calling for physicians to take these factors into account when devising therapeutic strategies.
"We found that [African-Americans and Hispanics] tended to be more disadvantaged socioeconomically, had more medical problems, less education and higher unemployment rates. As a result, they may need more treatment, including talk therapy, to overcome their depression," said Ira Lesser, MD, lead author and an investigator at Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2007/12/03/hlbf1203.htm.
