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Depressive disorder is known to have a significant impact on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients. Although studies have shown the efficacy of antidepressant medications for the treatment of depressive disorder, the effect of these medications on the general well-being of patients and on HRQoL remains controversial.
In the new study, researchers coordinated by Omar Almohammed of King Saud University in Saudi Arabia used data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) from 2005 to 2015, a large longitudinal study tracking the healthcare services used by Americans.
Anyone with a diagnosis of a depressive disorder was identified in the MEPS files.
Throughout the study, there were an average of 17.47 million adult patients diagnosed with depression each year with two years of follow-up, and 57.6% of them were treated with antidepressant medications.
Antidepressant use was associated with some improvement in the mental component of the SF-12, the health-related quality of life follow-up survey. However, when this positive change was compared with the change in the group of people who had been diagnosed with a depressive disorder but were not taking antidepressants, there was no statistically significant association of antidepressants with the physical component (p=0 .9595) or mental (p=0.6405) of the SF-12.
In other words, the change in quality of life seen among those taking antidepressants over two years was not significantly different from that seen among those not taking the drugs.
The study was unable to analyze subtypes or severity of depression separately. The authors state that future studies should investigate the use of non-pharmacological interventions for depression used in combination with antidepressants.
The authors add that “although we still need our patients with depression to continue using their antidepressant medications, long-term studies are needed to assess the real impact of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions on the quality of life of these patients. That said, the role of cognitive and behavioral interventions in the long-term management of depression should be further evaluated in an effort to improve the ultimate goal of care for these patients; improve their overall quality of life.
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