CAN PROZAC BE SAFELY USED BY ELDERLY PEOPLE WHO ARE DEPRESSED?

March 23rd, 2009

This is an important question, because depression hits the elderly hard. Depression is four times more common among the elderly than in the general population, and the suicide rate for people over 65 is fifteen times greater than that of the overall population.

John P. Feighner and his International Clinical Research (ICR) team investigated Prozac’s effects on the elderly, using at least two methodologies: double blind studies, in which some patients were given Prozac and some patients received tricyclic antidepressants, but neither patients nor researchers knew who got what, and open studies, which lack a control group. Both types of studies indicate that Prozac relieves the symptoms of depression as effectively an other antidepressants in geriatric patients. But patients taking Prozac complained less frequently of dry mouth, constipation, and drowsiness. As a result, they were much less likely to stop taking the drug due to adverse effects. Some 35% to 36.8% of the patients on tricyclic antidepressants dropped out of various studies, whereas 43% to 47.1% of the Prozac patients discontinued.

Prozac lacks adverse cardiovascular effects, compared to the tricyclic drugs, and is much less dangerous in overdose. Thus, most psychopharmacologists prefer Prozac as an antidepressant in the elderly.

Prescribing physicians should consider giving elderly patients lower dosages, especially when the patient has physical problems or is on a variety of other medications.