Here's yet another recent opinion piece on the issue of the effectiveness of anti-depressants relative to placebo. Although the article doesn't mention it, the discussion fits well with the idea referred to in my original post that the problem may be that placebos work too well in anti-depressant trials. In the article the suggestion is made that mild to moderate depression be first treated with placebo.
Of course this is not inconsistent with Allen Esterson's point that depression may not be a unitary entity. Placebos may not be useful for severe depression. See: Kelly, JH. (March 2, 2010). Antidepressants: Do they "work" or don't they? Scientific American http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=antidepressant s-do-they-work-or-dont-they or http://tinyurl.com/ybwoaon Stephen -------------------------------------------- Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology, Emeritus Bishop's University e-mail: sblack at ubishops.ca 2600 College St. Sherbrooke QC J1M 1Z7 Canada ----------------------------------------------------------------------- --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=1176 or send a blank email to leave-1176-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
