Antidepressants Don’t Relieve All Symptoms of Depression?

According to a new study, antidepressants may ultimately not relieve all of the symptoms that are associated with depression.

Based on their analysis, researchers noted that even when patients show a specific improvement after beginning treatment for a given mental condition with medication, particular symptoms like insomnia, sadness and decreased concentration are likely to occur and persist.

"Widely used antidepressant medications, while working overall, missed these symptoms. If patients have persistent residual symptoms, these individuals have a high probability of incomplete recovery," said Shawn McClintock, PhD., of University of Texas Southwestern medical school.

In order to come to their conclusions, researchers surveyed patients dealing with some form of mental health condition. A segment of the patients involved reported three to 13 residual depressive symptoms.

Of all of the symptoms, insomnia was the most-reported with 79 percent of responders noting its occurrence. Sadness and decreased concentration, however, followed in second and third places with 71 percent and 70 percent, respectively.

Above all else, the goal of this study was to show that while medications have helped aid in the process of treating depression, the particular symptoms involved cannot simply be brushed under the rug.

The results of this research were published in the April print issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology.