Re: Introduction of SSRI in the US associated with reduction in suicides

June 14, 2006

Also on the same site (PLoS) is this very interesting paper

http://tinyurl.com/rq93w

which clearly indicates the extent to which this industry, under the

" watchful " eye of the FDA, will go to distort and/or hide the truth

about SSRI's to protect this lucrative market.

Basically, SSRI's are no better than a placebo, the exact mechanism of

action is (still) unknown, and, as the authors in the above paper

conclude, " the incongruence between the scientific literature and the

claims made in FDA-regulated SSRI advertisements is remarkable, and

possibly unparalleled. "

I'd say that pretty much casts just a bit of doubt over any of the

SSRI-related feel-good propoganda.

-randy

>

> How dumb do they think we are??

>

June 14, 2006

The authors of this study claim that no competing interests exist. Yet, Julio Licinio presented a talk at Lilly Research Laboratory in Indianapolis, Indiana, on March 16, 2005, on "Depression, Antidepressants, and Suicidality: A Critical Appraisal" and "Suicide in the U.S. 1960-2002: Impact of Fluoxetine Prescriptions", slight;y over a year ago (see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=pubmed & dopt=Abstract & list_uids=16768544 & query_hl=1 & itool=pubmed_docsum ). This is noted on page 19 of his 51 page Curriculum Vitae at http://www4.od.nih.gov/oba/SACGHS/roster/Licinio_CV.pdf . Eli Lilly claims to have had

no knowledge of Licinio's current study. Hmmm... I wonder what Licinio talked to them about a year ago March, when the topic of his presentation is more or less the topic of his study which is in the process of being published. Can we trust NIH to fund an "independent" study? Aasa http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:zoQFlvfDazUJ:www.4woman.gov/news/english/533183.htm+licinio+lilly & hl=en & gl=ca & ct=clnk & cd=1 June 12, 2006 Antidepressants Do Prevent Suicides, Researchers Contend MONDAY, June 12 (HealthDay News) -- Countering

recent reports that they might boost suicide risk in users, a major new study finds that antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have actually saved thousands of lives by preventing suicides since they were introduced in 1988. The benefits of SSRIs were particularly pronounced among females, said the authors of an independent study appearing in the June issue of the journal PLoS Medicine. "As the number of [sSRI] prescriptions go up, the number of suicides are going down," said Dr. Julio Licinio, chairman of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Miami School of Medicine. "I don't see how these drugs could be causing suicide if the rates [of suicide] are actually going down." Licinio was lead author of the study, which was conducted while he was

at the University of California, Los Angeles. The findings seemed to dovetail with other psychiatric workers' clinical experience. "I've seen the SSRIs help people tremendously," said Helen Stavros, a clinical social worker in the department of psychiatry at Ochsner Health System in New Orleans. "I've never seen anyone become suicidal as a result of being on antidepressants." Stavros started working at Ochsner in 1987, shortly before the first-ever SSRI, Prozac, was approved. Another expert called the finding interesting, but added a caution. "The results of this study are consistent with previous reports. Fortunately, suicide rates have been declining since the early 1990's. While this correlates with the increased use of SSRI antidepressants, including fluoxetine, this finding does not, by itself, demonstrate a causal relationship," said Dr. Fassler, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Vermont

College of Medicine in Burlington. He added, "There are numerous other intervening variables, including socioeconomic factors, access to drugs, alcohol and firearms, and improvements in emergency medical care." The past few years have witnessed a prolonged debate about the safety of antidepressant use, especially in children and teens. In October 2004, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration directed manufacturers of SSRIs to revise their labeling to include a "black box" warning that alerts health-care providers to an increased risk of suicidality in children and teens. In July 2005, the FDA issued a public health advisory that raised the possibility that the risk of suicidality also applied to adults taking SSRIs, after several studies pointed to that possibility. Meanwhile, the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) ruled Thursday that children as young as eight can be given Prozac. The group said that the

drug was safe for young people to take, despite concerns that it can trigger suicidal feelings in patients. The ruling added that Prozac should only be given to children with moderate to severe depression who have not responded to several sessions of psychological therapy. It also said the drug should only be given in small doses and must be used alongside counseling. British health authorities have also declared that all antidepressants except Prozac should not be used by children or adolescents. Major depressive disorder, for which SSRIs are often diagnosed, afflicts about 10 percent of American men and 20 percent of American women during their lifetimes. At any one point in time, 3 percent of the population has the disorder (10 percent of the elderly). For this study, the authors analyzed federal data on suicide rates since 1960, along with sales of fluoxetine (Prozac) since it became available in 1988. Analysis was continued through

2002. "We used Prozac as a benchmark for the class of drugs," Licinio explained. Between the early 1960s and 1988, suicide rates held relatively steady, fluctuating between 12.2 per 100,000 and 13.7 per 100,000. Since 1988, however, suicide rates have been on a gradual decline, with the lowest point being 10.4 per 100,000 in 2000. During the same time frame, Prozac prescriptions rose, from 2,469,000 in 1988 to 33,320,000 in 2002. Using mathematical modeling, the investigators estimated the rates of suicide if the pre-1988 trends had continued. "On average, we estimated that there would have been an additional 33,600 suicides if the pre-1988 trends had been maintained," Licinio said. "We think that this [sSRIs] has had a substantial impact on the number of suicides." With that in mind,

moves to restrict the use of SSRI antidepressants could have a harmful effect, the authors stated. "I don't think these claims that antidepressants increase suicide have a solid base," Licinio said. "If you have a drug that's supposed to be causing something, the more of the drug that's used, the more of the bad outcome you would have. What we show is the converse." One troubling trend noted by the authors of the article is that the number of antidepressant prescriptions seem to be declining as a result of the recent controversy. That bothered other experts as well. "I see a lot of people being afraid of taking drugs when they could be really helpful to them," Stavros said. Licinio is now planning a study to observe the effect of anti-depressants on suicidal thoughts and behaviors, because much of the available data comes from

studies whose primary objective was something other than suicidality. "Nobody, to my knowledge, has done this," he said. "Usually in science, the best idea is to test the point and not treat it as a by-the-way. Suicidality has [up until now] been assessed as a secondary factor." Fassler agreed that more study is needed. "The finding is interesting, and somewhat reassuring, given the frequency with which these medications are currently used," he said. "Clearly, this is an area where additional research is warranted." According to the authors, Eli Lilly -- the maker of Prozac -- was unaware of and not involved in the study, which was funded by a grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the Dana Foundation. Licinio did, however, accept an offer to consult for Lilly

after this research was accepted for publication. More information For more on depression, head to the U.S. National Alliance on Mental Illness. SOURCES: Julio Licinio, M.D., chairman, department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, University of Miami School of Medicine; Helen Stavros, LCSW, Ph.D., clinical social worker, department of psychiatry, Ochsner Health System, New Orleans; Fassler, M.D., clinical professor of psychiatry, University of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington; June 2006 PLoS MedicineCopyright © 2006 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.This is a story from HealthDay, a service of

ScoutNews, LLC. Aasa <penas7ar@...> wrote: How dumb do they think we are?? A "temporal association" between increased fluoxetine prescribing and decreased number of completed suicides, does not mean that fluoxetine is without risk of causing suicidal ideation/thoughts and/or behavior. Does anyone care to comment on this study? Modeling of the Temporal Patterns of Fluoxetine Prescriptions and Suicide Rates in the United States http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document & doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0030190 Here's an excerpt from the Discussion section of the paper: Our results indicate a temporal association between the introduction of fluoxetine and increased dispensing patterns and decreased rates of suicide, but they do not establish a mechanistic cause. When the competing hypotheses (i) that antidepressants can trigger suicide, or (ii) that by treating depression antidepressants reduce suicide rates, are examined in light of our results, it is logical to refute the concept that on a population level fluoxetine dispensing is associated with increased suicide, because not only did suicide rates start to decrease after fluoxetine came to market, but we also show here a highly significant negative

correlation between fluoxetine dispensing and suicide rates. If the opposing hypothesis (i) were true, then we would have expected to find an overall rise in the rates of suicide after the introduction of SSRIs or at least not a drop in the rates. Moreover, according to our modeling, if pre-1988 (and hence pre-fluoxetine) suicide trends had persisted to the end of the study period, the number of suicides would have been in the range of 33,600 higher in cumulative terms. ----------------------------------------- And here are their Conclusions: Conclusions The introduction of SSRIs in 1988 has been temporally associated with a substantial reduction in the number of suicides. This effect may have been more apparent in the female population, whom we postulate might have particularly benefited from SSRI treatment. While these types of data cannot lead to conclusions on causality, we suggest here that in the

context of untreated depression being the major cause of suicide, antidepressant treatment could have had a contributory role in the reduction of suicide rates in the period 1988–2002. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I wonder what kind of spin the media will use when reporting on this study. I came across it today, at http://www.nelm.nhs.uk/Record%20Viewing/vR.aspx?id=566530 . Aasa

June 15, 2006

The authors of this study claim that no competing interests exist. Yet, Julio Licinio presented a talk at Lilly Research Laboratory in Indianapolis, Indiana, on March 16, 2005, on "Depression, Antidepressants, and Suicidality: A Critical Appraisal" and "Suicide in the U.S. 1960-2002: Impact of Fluoxetine Prescriptions", slightly over a year ago (see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=pubmed & dopt=Abstract & list_uids=16768544 & query_hl=1 & itool=pubmed_docsum ). This is noted on page 19 of his 51 page Curriculum Vitae at http://www4.od.nih.gov/oba/SACGHS/roster/Licinio_CV.pdf .

Eli Lilly claims to have had no knowledge of Licinio's current study. Hmmm... I wonder what Licinio talked to them about a year ago March, when the topic of his presentation is more or less the topic of his study which is in the process of being published. Can we trust NIH to fund an "independent" study? I'll bet there will be more in the news during the upcoming days about the "results" of this study. Now that Julio Licinio has been hired as a consultant for Eli Lilly, I wonder how that may impact on his position as Editor of Molecular Psychiatry. Aasa http://72.14.203.104/search?q=cache:zoQFlvfDazUJ:www.4woman.gov/news/english/533183.htm+licinio+lilly & hl=en & gl=ca & ct=clnk & cd=1 June 12, 2006 Antidepressants Do Prevent Suicides, Researchers Contend MONDAY, June 12 (HealthDay News) -- Countering recent reports that they might boost suicide risk in users, a major new study finds that antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have actually saved thousands of lives by preventing suicides since they were introduced in 1988. The benefits of SSRIs were particularly pronounced among females, said the authors of an independent study appearing in the June issue of the journal PLoS Medicine. "As the number of [sSRI] prescriptions go up, the number of suicides are going down," said Dr. Julio Licinio, chairman of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Miami School of Medicine. "I don't see how these drugs could be causing suicide if the rates [of suicide] are actually going down." Licinio was lead author of the study, which was conducted while he was at the University of California, Los Angeles. The findings seemed to dovetail with other psychiatric workers' clinical experience. "I've seen the SSRIs help people tremendously," said Helen Stavros, a clinical social worker in the department of psychiatry at Ochsner Health System in New Orleans. "I've never seen anyone become suicidal as a result of being on antidepressants." Stavros started working at Ochsner in 1987,

shortly before the first-ever SSRI, Prozac, was approved. Another expert called the finding interesting, but added a caution. "The results of this study are consistent with previous reports. Fortunately, suicide rates have been declining since the early 1990's. While this correlates with the increased use of SSRI antidepressants, including fluoxetine, this finding does not, by itself, demonstrate a causal relationship," said Dr. Fassler, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Vermont College of Medicine in Burlington. He added, "There are numerous other intervening variables, including socioeconomic factors, access to drugs, alcohol and firearms, and improvements in emergency medical care." The past few years have witnessed a prolonged debate about the safety of antidepressant use, especially in children and teens. In October 2004, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration directed

manufacturers of SSRIs to revise their labeling to include a "black box" warning that alerts health-care providers to an increased risk of suicidality in children and teens. In July 2005, the FDA issued a public health advisory that raised the possibility that the risk of suicidality also applied to adults taking SSRIs, after several studies pointed to that possibility. Meanwhile, the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) ruled Thursday that children as young as eight can be given Prozac. The group said that the drug was safe for young people to take, despite concerns that it can trigger suicidal feelings in patients. The ruling added that Prozac should only be given to children with moderate to severe depression who have not responded to several sessions of psychological therapy. It also said the drug should only be given in small doses and must be used alongside counseling. British health authorities have also declared that all

antidepressants except Prozac should not be used by children or adolescents. Major depressive disorder, for which SSRIs are often diagnosed, afflicts about 10 percent of American men and 20 percent of American women during their lifetimes. At any one point in time, 3 percent of the population has the disorder (10 percent of the elderly). For this study, the authors analyzed federal data on suicide rates since 1960, along with sales of fluoxetine (Prozac) since it became available in 1988. Analysis was continued through 2002. "We used Prozac as a benchmark for the class of drugs," Licinio explained. Between the early 1960s and 1988, suicide rates held relatively steady, fluctuating between 12.2 per 100,000 and 13.7 per 100,000. Since 1988, however, suicide rates have been on a gradual decline, with the lowest point being 10.4 per 100,000 in 2000. During the

same time frame, Prozac prescriptions rose, from 2,469,000 in 1988 to 33,320,000 in 2002. Using mathematical modeling, the investigators estimated the rates of suicide if the pre-1988 trends had continued. "On average, we estimated that there would have been an additional 33,600 suicides if the pre-1988 trends had been maintained," Licinio said. "We think that this [sSRIs] has had a substantial impact on the number of suicides." With that in mind, moves to restrict the use of SSRI antidepressants could have a harmful effect, the authors stated. "I don't think these claims that antidepressants increase suicide have a solid base," Licinio said. "If you have a drug that's supposed to be causing something, the more of the drug that's used, the more of the bad outcome you would have. What we show is the converse."

One troubling trend noted by the authors of the article is that the number of antidepressant prescriptions seem to be declining as a result of the recent controversy. That bothered other experts as well. "I see a lot of people being afraid of taking drugs when they could be really helpful to them," Stavros said. Licinio is now planning a study to observe the effect of anti-depressants on suicidal thoughts and behaviors, because much of the available data comes from studies whose primary objective was something other than suicidality. "Nobody, to my knowledge, has done this," he said. "Usually in science, the best idea is to test the point and not treat it as a by-the-way. Suicidality has [up until now] been assessed as a secondary factor." Fassler agreed that more study is needed. "The finding is interesting, and somewhat reassuring, given the frequency with which

these medications are currently used," he said. "Clearly, this is an area where additional research is warranted." According to the authors, Eli Lilly -- the maker of Prozac -- was unaware of and not involved in the study, which was funded by a grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the Dana Foundation. Licinio did, however, accept an offer to consult for Lilly after this research was accepted for publication. More information For more on depression, head to the U.S. National Alliance on Mental Illness. SOURCES: Julio Licinio, M.D., chairman, department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, University of Miami School of Medicine; Helen Stavros, LCSW, Ph.D., clinical social worker, department of psychiatry, Ochsner Health System, New Orleans; Fassler, M.D., clinical professor of psychiatry, University of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington; June 2006 PLoS MedicineCopyright © 2006 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.This is a story from HealthDay, a service of ScoutNews, LLC. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Aasa <penas7ar@...> wrote: How dumb do they think we are?? A "temporal association" between increased fluoxetine prescribing and decreased number of completed suicides, does not mean that fluoxetine is without risk of causing suicidal ideation/thoughts and/or behavior. Does anyone care to comment on this study? Modeling of the Temporal Patterns of Fluoxetine Prescriptions and Suicide Rates in the United States http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document & doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0030190 Here's an excerpt from the Discussion section of the paper: Our results indicate a temporal association between the introduction of fluoxetine and increased dispensing patterns and decreased rates of suicide, but they do not establish a mechanistic cause. When the competing hypotheses (i) that antidepressants can trigger suicide, or (ii) that by treating depression antidepressants reduce suicide rates, are examined in light of our results, it is logical to refute the concept that on a population level fluoxetine dispensing is associated with increased suicide, because not only did suicide rates start to decrease after fluoxetine came to market, but we also show here a highly significant negative correlation between fluoxetine dispensing and suicide rates. If the opposing hypothesis (i) were true, then we would have expected to find an overall rise in the rates of suicide after the introduction of SSRIs or at least not

a drop in the rates. Moreover, according to our modeling, if pre-1988 (and hence pre-fluoxetine) suicide trends had persisted to the end of the study period, the number of suicides would have been in the range of 33,600 higher in cumulative terms. ----------------------------------------- And here are their Conclusions: Conclusions The introduction of SSRIs in 1988 has been temporally associated with a substantial reduction in the number of suicides. This effect may have been more apparent in the female population, whom we postulate might have particularly benefited from SSRI treatment. While these types of data cannot lead to conclusions on causality, we suggest here that in the context of untreated depression being the major cause of suicide, antidepressant treatment could have had a contributory role in the reduction of suicide rates in the period 1988–2002. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I wonder what kind of spin the media will use when reporting on this study. I came across it today, at http://www.nelm.nhs.uk/Record%20Viewing/vR.aspx?id=566530 . Aasa

June 15, 2006

The authors of this study claim that no competing interests exist. Yet, Julio Licinio presented a talk at Lilly Research Laboratory in Indianapolis, Indiana, on March 16, 2005, on "Depression, Antidepressants, and Suicidality: A Critical Appraisal" and "Suicide in the U.S. 1960-2002: Impact of Fluoxetine Prescriptions", slightly over a year ago (see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=pubmed & dopt=Abstract & list_uids=16768544 & query_hl=1 & itool=pubmed_docsum ). This is noted on page 19 of his 51 page Curriculum Vitae at http://www4.od.nih.gov/oba/SACGHS/roster/Licinio_CV.pdf . Eli Lilly claims to have had no knowledge of Licinio's current study. Hmmm... I wonder what Licinio talked to them about a year ago March, when the topic of his presentation is more or less the topic of his study which is in the process of being published. Can we trust NIH to fund an "independent" study? I'll bet there will be more in the news during the upcoming days about the "results" of this study. Now that Julio Licinio has been hired as a consultant for Eli Lilly, I wonder how that may impact on his position as Editor of Molecular Psychiatry. Aasa ------------------------------------------------------------- New Study Suggests Antidepressants Save Lives14 Jun 2006 A just published UCLA study suggests that the use of antidepressants to treat depression has saved thousands of lives, despite the concern about a possible link between suicide risk and the class of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). The lead author of the study is Dr. Julio Licinio, the new chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Miami Leonard M. School of Medicine. Licinio conducted the study at UCLA while he was the director of the Center for Pharmacogenomics and Clinical Pharmacology at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Published in the June 2006 edition of the peer-reviewed journal PLoS Medicine, the study analyzes federal data on overall suicide rates since the early 1960s and sales of the SSRI fluoxetine, or Prozac, in the United States since the antidepressant's introduction in 1988 through 2002. The data show the

U.S. suicide rate held fairly steady for 15 years prior to the introduction of fluoxetine, then dropped steadily over 14 years as sales of the antidepressant rose. The research team found the strongest effect among women. Mathematical modeling of probable suicide rates from 1988 to 2002, based on pre-1988 data, suggests a cumulative decrease in expected suicide mortality of 33,600 people since the introduction of the antidepressant. "Our findings certainly suggest that the introduction of SSRIs has contributed to reduction of suicide rates in the United States," Licinio said. "However, the findings do not preclude the possibility of increased risk of suicide among small populations of individuals." The Food and Drug Administration introduced "black box warnings" on the most popular SSRIs in 2004 amid rising concerns in the United States and United Kingdom concerning the relationship between suicide and antidepressant use in children and adults.

A key unanswered question involves whether antidepressants increase suicide over and above the underlying disorder, such as major depression. "Much of the psychiatric community fears that the absence of treatment may prove more harmful to depressed individuals than the effects of the drugs themselves," Licinio said. "Most people who commit suicide suffer from untreated depression. Our goal is to explore a possible SSRI suicide link while ensuring that effective treatment and drug development for depression is not halted without cause." The study examined age-adjusted suicide rate data from the Centers for Disease Control and the U.S. Census Bureau from the early 1960s until 2002. Data show suicide rates fluctuated between 12.2 and 13.7 per 100,000 people for the entire U.S. population until 1988. Since then, suicide rates have gradually declined, with the lowest rate at 10.4 per 100,000 in 2000. The decline is significantly associated with increased

numbers of fluoxetine prescriptions dispensed, from 2.47 million in 1988 to 33.32 million in 2002. Major depressive disorder affects approximately 10 percent of American men and 20 percent of women over their lifetimes. Because the prevalence is so high and treatment lasts several months or years, antidepressant medications are the most common form of treatment. Fluoxetine is the most widely prescribed antidepressant medication in the world and the only antidepressant that is FDA-approved for treatment of depression in children. ### The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Dana Foundation. The University of Miami Leonard M. School of Medicine serves more than 5 million people as the only academic medical center in South Florida. The School of Medicine has earned international acclaim for research, clinical care and biomedical innovations. Research is a top priority with more than 800 ongoing projects

funded by more than $217 million in external grants and contracts to faculty. The Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA is an interdisciplinary research and education institute devoted to the understanding of complex human behavior, including the genetic, biological, behavioral and sociocultural underpinnings of normal behavior, and the causes and consequences of neuropsychiatric disorders. Prozac is made by Eli Lilly and Co. The pharmaceutical company was not involved in the design, preparation, review or publication of this paper, and was unaware of the research until after it was accepted for publication. Licinio accepted an offer to consult for Eli Lilly after this research was accepted for publication. Contact: Dan PageUniversity of California - Los Angeles Article URL:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=45055 -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Aasa <penas7ar@...> wrote: How dumb do they think we are?? A "temporal association" between increased fluoxetine prescribing and decreased number of completed suicides, does not mean that fluoxetine is without risk of causing suicidal ideation/thoughts

and/or behavior. Does anyone care to comment on this study? Modeling of the Temporal Patterns of Fluoxetine Prescriptions and Suicide Rates in the United States http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document & doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0030190 Here's an excerpt from the Discussion section of the paper: Our results indicate a temporal association between the introduction of fluoxetine and increased dispensing patterns and decreased rates of suicide, but they do not establish a mechanistic cause. When the competing hypotheses (i) that antidepressants can trigger suicide, or (ii) that by treating depression antidepressants reduce suicide rates, are examined in light of our results, it is logical to refute the concept that on a

population level fluoxetine dispensing is associated with increased suicide, because not only did suicide rates start to decrease after fluoxetine came to market, but we also show here a highly significant negative correlation between fluoxetine dispensing and suicide rates. If the opposing hypothesis (i) were true, then we would have expected to find an overall rise in the rates of suicide after the introduction of SSRIs or at least not a drop in the rates. Moreover, according to our modeling, if pre-1988 (and hence pre-fluoxetine) suicide trends had persisted to the end of the study period, the number of suicides would have been in the range of 33,600 higher in cumulative terms. ----------------------------------------- And here are their Conclusions: Conclusions The introduction of SSRIs in 1988 has been temporally associated with a substantial reduction in the number of suicides. This effect may have

been more apparent in the female population, whom we postulate might have particularly benefited from SSRI treatment. While these types of data cannot lead to conclusions on causality, we suggest here that in the context of untreated depression being the major cause of suicide, antidepressant treatment could have had a contributory role in the reduction of suicide rates in the period 1988–2002. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I wonder what kind of spin the media will use when reporting on this study. I came across it today, at http://www.nelm.nhs.uk/Record%20Viewing/vR.aspx?id=566530 . Aasa

June 15, 2006