The risks of adverse events with venlafaxine and mirtazapine versus 'active placebo', placebo, or no intervention for adults with major depressive disorder: a protocol for two separate systematic reviews with meta-analysis and Trial Sequential Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Major depressive disorder causes a great burden on patients and societies. Venlafaxine and mirtazapine are commonly prescribed as second-line treatment for patients with major depressive disorder worldwide. Previous systematic reviews have concluded that venlafaxine and mirtazapine reduce depressive symptoms, but the effects seem small and may not be important to the average patient. Moreover, previous reviews have not systematically assessed the occurrence of adverse events. Therefore, we aim to investigate the risks of adverse events with venlafaxine or mirtazapine versus 'active placebo', placebo, or no intervention for adults with major depressive disorder in two separate systematic reviews. METHODS: This is a protocol for two systematic reviews with meta-analysis and Trial Sequential Analysis. The assessments of the effects of venlafaxine or mirtazapine will be reported in two separate reviews. The protocol is reported as recommended by Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocols, risk of bias will be assessed with the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool version 2, clinical significance will be assessed using our eight-step procedure, and the certainty of the evidence will be assessed with the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach. We will search for published and unpublished trials in major medical databases and trial registers. Two review authors will independently screen the results from the literature searches, extract data, and assess risk of bias. We will include published or unpublished randomised clinical trial comparing venlafaxine or mirtazapine with 'active placebo', placebo, or no intervention for adults with major depressive disorder. The primary outcomes will be suicides or suicide attempts, serious adverse events, and non-serious adverse events. Exploratory outcomes will include depressive symptoms, quality of life, and individual adverse events. If feasible, we will assess the intervention effects using random-effects and fixed-effect meta-analyses. DISCUSSION: Venlafaxine and mirtazapine are frequently used as second-line treatment of major depressive disorder worldwide. There is a need for a thorough systematic review to provide the necessary background for weighing the benefits against the harms. This review will ultimately inform best practice in the treatment of major depressive disorder. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42022315395.

Designing withdrawal support services for antidepressant users: Patients' views on existing services and what they really need.

BACKGROUND: Public Health England has recommended that services be put in place to support people who choose to withdraw from antidepressants because of a current gap. This study aims to explore the views of members of online withdrawal peer-support groups about existing healthcare and what additional support is needed. METHODS: The administrators of 15 online support groups for people stopping antidepressants were asked to advertise an online survey to their members. The survey, which was online from May 2021 to April 2022, was completed by 1276 people from 49 countries. RESULTS: 71% of respondents found their doctors' advice unhelpful (57% 'very unhelpful') regarding stopping an antidepressant; the main reasons being 'Recommended a reduction rate that was too quick for me', 'Not familiar enough with withdrawal symptoms to advise me' and 'Suggested stopping antidepressants would not cause withdrawal symptoms'. One in three did not seek advice from their prescriber when deciding whether to withdraw, with the main reasons being 'I felt they would not be supportive' (58%) and 'I felt that they didn't have the expertise to help me' (51%). The most common prescriber responses to those who did seek advice was 'Suggested a quick withdrawal schedule' (56%) and 'Not supportive and offered no guidance' (27%). The most common discontinuation periods recommended by doctors were one month (23%) and two weeks (19%). A range of potential professional services were rated 'very useful', most frequently: 'Access to smaller doses (e.g. tapering strips, liquid, smaller dose tablets) to ensure gradual reduction' (88%) and 'A health professional providing a personalised, flexible reduction plan' (79%). LIMITATIONS: This was a convenience sample, which may have been biased towards people who took longer to withdraw, and experienced more withdrawal symptoms, than antidepressant users in general. Black and ethnic minority people, and people without access to the internet, were underrepresented. CONCLUSIONS: Most participants reported their prescribers were unable to help them safely stop antidepressants, compelling them to turn to online peer-support groups instead. Our findings indicate, in keeping with previous studies, that clinicians require upskilling in safe tapering of antidepressants, and that patients need specialised services to help them stop safely.

Estimating Risk of Antidepressant Withdrawal from a Review of Published Data.

Adaptation of the brain to the presence of a drug predicts withdrawal on cessation. The outcome of adaptation is often referred to as 'physical dependence' in pharmacology, as distinct from addiction, although these terms have unfortunately become conflated in some diagnostic guides. Physical dependence to antidepressants may occur in some patients, consistent with the fact that some patients experience withdrawal effects from these medications. It is thought that longer duration of use, higher dose and specific antidepressants affect the risk of antidepressant withdrawal effects as they might cause greater adaptation of the brain. We searched PubMed for relevant systematic reviews and other relevant analyses to summarise existing data on determinants of antidepressant withdrawal incidence, severity and duration. Overall, data were limited. From survey data, increased duration of use was associated with an increased incidence and severity of withdrawal effects, consistent with some evidence from data provided by drug manufacturers. Duration of use may be related to duration of withdrawal effects but data are heterogenous and sparse. Serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors and paroxetine are associated with higher risks than other antidepressants, though data for some antidepressants are lacking. Higher doses of antidepressant has some weak association with an increased risk of withdrawal, with some ceiling effects, perhaps reflecting receptor occupancy relationships. Past experience of withdrawal effects is known to predict future risk. Based on these data, we outline a preliminary rubric for determining the risk of withdrawal symptoms for a particular patient, which may have relevance for determining tapering rates. Given the limited scope of the current research, future research should aim to clarify prediction of antidepressant withdrawal risk, especially by examining the risk of withdrawal in long-term users of medication, as well as the severity and duration of effects, to improve the preliminary tool for predictive purposes. Further research into the precise adaptations in long-term antidepressant use may improve the ability to predict withdrawal effects for a particular patient.

Should gabapentinoids be prescribed long-term for anxiety and other mental health conditions?

Prescription rates for gabapentinoids are rising in England. Pregabalin is currently recommended by NICE for the treatment of anxiety. Gabapentinoids have some overlap with the action of benzodiazepines, and have similar issues with tolerance, dependence, addiction and withdrawal. They were scheduled as class C controlled drugs in 2019 because of these risks. There were 244 deaths due to poisoning recorded by the ONS in 2019 involving pregabalin. Poisonings due to pregabalin usually involve concomitant use of opioids or other drugs. The rate of deaths involving pregabalin has been rising steeply for the last 10 years, and now exceeds those attributed to diazepam, fentanyl, the tricyclics as a group or SSRIs as a group. Evidence for the use of pregabalin in anxiety is derived from short-term trials, with marginal differences from placebo, which do not take into account the longer term effects of tolerance, dependence and withdrawal. We call on NICE to re-evaluate their support for use of pregabalin in anxiety in light of its known harms. The use of gabapentinoids off-label for other psychiatric conditions should also be re-considered. In general, psychotropic medications require longer term efficacy and safety studies before allowing widespread use.

A Method for Tapering Antipsychotic Treatment That May Minimize the Risk of Relapse.

The process of stopping antipsychotics may be causally related to relapse, potentially linked to neuroadaptations that persist after cessation, including dopaminergic hypersensitivity. Therefore, the risk of relapse on cessation of antipsychotics may be minimized by more gradual tapering. There is converging evidence that suggests that adaptations to antipsychotic exposure can persist for months or years after stopping the medication-from animal studies, observation of tardive dyskinesia in patients, and the clustering of relapses in this time period after the cessation of antipsychotics. Furthermore, PET imaging demonstrates a hyperbolic relationship between doses of antipsychotic and D2 receptor blockade. We, therefore, suggest that when antipsychotics are reduced, it should be done gradually (over months or years) and in a hyperbolic manner (to reduce D2 blockade "evenly"): ie, reducing by one quarter (or one half) of the most recent dose of antipsychotic, equivalent approximately to a reduction of 5 (or 10) percentage points of its D2 blockade, sequentially (so that reductions become smaller and smaller in size as total dose decreases), at intervals of 3-6 months, titrated to individual tolerance. Some patients may prefer to taper at 10% or less of their most recent dose each month. This process might allow underlying adaptations time to resolve, possibly reducing the risk of relapse on discontinuation. Final doses before complete cessation may need to be as small as 1/40th a therapeutic dose to prevent a large decrease in D2 blockade when stopped. This proposal should be tested in randomized controlled trials.

Barriers to stopping neuroleptic (antipsychotic) treatment in people with schizophrenia, psychosis or bipolar disorder.

Most guidelines recommend long-term, indefinite neuroleptic (or antipsychotic) treatment for people with schizophrenia, recurrent psychosis or bipolar disorder, on the basis that these medications reduce the chance of relapse. However, neuroleptics have significant adverse effects, including sexual dysfunction, emotional blunting, metabolic disturbance and brain shrinkage, and patients often request to stop them. Evidence for the benefits of long-term treatment is also not as robust as generally thought. Short-term randomised trials show higher rates of relapse among those whose neuroleptic treatment is discontinued compared with those on maintenance treatment, but they are confounded by adverse effects associated with the withdrawal of established medication. Some longer-term studies show possible advantages of medication reduction and discontinuation in terms of improved social functioning and recovery. Therefore, there is a good rationale for supporting patients who wish to stop their medication, especially given the patient choice agenda favoured by The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE). The major barrier to stopping antipsychotics is an understandable fear of relapse among patients, their families and clinicians. Institutional structures also prioritise short-term stability over possible long-term improvements. The risk of relapse may be mitigated by more gradual reduction of medication, but further research is needed on this. Psychosocial support for patients during the process of reducing medication may also be useful, particularly to enhance coping skills. Guidelines to summarise evidence on ways to reduce medication would be useful. Many patients want to try and stop neuroleptic medication for good reasons, and psychiatrists can help to make this a realistic option by supporting people to do it as safely as possible, with the best chance of a positive outcome.

Tapering of SSRI treatment to mitigate withdrawal symptoms.

All classes of drug that are prescribed to treat depression are associated with withdrawal syndromes. SSRI withdrawal syndrome occurs often and can be severe, and might compel patients to recommence their medication. Although the withdrawal syndrome can be differentiated from recurrence of the underlying disorder, it might also be mistaken for recurrence, leading to long-term unnecessary medication. Guidelines recommend short tapers, of between 2 weeks and 4 weeks, down to therapeutic minimum doses, or half-minimum doses, before complete cessation. Studies have shown that these tapers show minimal benefits over abrupt discontinuation, and are often not tolerated by patients. Tapers over a period of months and down to doses much lower than minimum therapeutic doses have shown greater success in reducing withdrawal symptoms. Other types of medication associated with withdrawal, such as benzodiazepenes, are tapered to reduce their biological effect at receptors by fixed amounts to minimise withdrawal symptoms. These dose reductions are done with exponential tapering programmes that reach very small doses. This method could have relevance for tapering of SSRIs. We examined the PET imaging data of serotonin transporter occupancy by SSRIs and found that hyperbolically reducing doses of SSRIs reduces their effect on serotonin transporter inhibition in a linear manner. We therefore suggest that SSRIs should be tapered hyperbolically and slowly to doses much lower than those of therapeutic minimums, in line with tapering regimens for other medications associated with withdrawal symptoms. Withdrawal symptoms will then be minimised.

Antidepressant compounds can be both pro- and anti-inflammatory in human hippocampal cells.

BACKGROUND: The increasingly recognized role of inflammation in the pathogenesis and prognosis of depression has led to a renewed focus on the immunomodulatory properties of compounds with antidepressant action. Studies have, so far, explored such properties in human blood samples and in animal models. METHODS: Here we used the more relevant model of human hippocampal progenitor cells exposed to an inflammatory milieu, induced by treatment with IL-1ß. This increased the levels of a series of cytokines and chemokines produced by the cells, including a dose- and time-dependent increase of IL-6. We investigated the immunomodulatory properties of four monoaminergic antidepressants (venlafaxine, sertraline, moclobemide, and agomelatine) and two omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs; eicosapentanoic acid [EPA] and docosahexanoic acid [DHA]). RESULTS: We found that venlafaxine and EPA were anti-inflammatory: venlafaxine decreased IL-6, with a trend for decreases of IL-8 and IP-10, while EPA decreased the levels of IL-6, IL-15, IL-1RA, and IP-10. These effects were associated with a corresponding decrease in NF-kB activity. Unexpectedly, sertraline and DHA had pro-inflammatory effects, with sertraline increasing IFN-α and IL-6 and DHA increasing IL-15, IL-1RA, IFN-α, and IL-6, though these changes were also associated with a decrease in NF-kB activity, suggesting distinct modes of action. Agomelatine and moclobemide had no effect on IL-6 secretion. CONCLUSIONS: These observations indicate that monoaminergic antidepressants and n-3 PUFAs have distinctive effects on immune processes in human neural cells. Further characterization of these actions may enable more effective personalization of treatment based on the inflammatory status of patients.