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Long-term and preventative treatment for seasonal affective disorder

Westrin, Åsa LU and Lam, Raymond W (2007) In CNS Drugs 21(11). p.901-909
Abstract
Recurrent major depressive disorder with regular seasonal patterns, commonly known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD), has evoked substantial research in the last two decades. It is now recognised that SAD is a common condition with prevalence rates between 0.4% and 2.9% of the general population, and that patients with SAD experience significant morbidity and impairment in psychosocial function. There is good evidence that bright light therapy and antidepressant medications are effective for the short-term treatment of SAD; however, given that SAD is characterised by recurrent major depressive episodes, long-term and maintenance treatment must be considered. Unfortunately, there are few studies of longer term (> 8 weeks) and... (More)
Recurrent major depressive disorder with regular seasonal patterns, commonly known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD), has evoked substantial research in the last two decades. It is now recognised that SAD is a common condition with prevalence rates between 0.4% and 2.9% of the general population, and that patients with SAD experience significant morbidity and impairment in psychosocial function. There is good evidence that bright light therapy and antidepressant medications are effective for the short-term treatment of SAD; however, given that SAD is characterised by recurrent major depressive episodes, long-term and maintenance treatment must be considered. Unfortunately, there are few studies of longer term (> 8 weeks) and maintenance (preventative) treatments for SAD. The weight of evidence suggests that light therapy usually needs to be continued daily throughout the winter season because of rapid relapse when light is stopped too early in the treatment period. However, some studies support the use of antidepressants to continue the response from a brief (1-2 weeks) course of light therapy early in the depressive episode, as soon as the first symptoms emerge in autumn. Only small studies have examined preventative treatment (before onset of symptoms) with light therapy, all of which have methodological limitations. The best evidence for preventative treatment in SAD comes from antidepressant studies. Three large, randomised, placebo-controlled studies have shown that preventative treatment with bupropion XL reduces the recurrence rate of depressive episodes in patients with SAD. Given the limitations in the evidence base and the inconsistent recurrence rate of winter depressive episodes, clinical recommendations for long-term and preventative treatment must individualise treatment choices and weigh potential benefits against possible adverse effects. (Less)
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author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
CNS Drugs
volume
21
issue
11
pages
901 - 909
publisher
Adis International
external identifiers
  • wos:000250494000003
  • scopus:35048845982
ISSN
1172-7047
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
795ed01f-7f15-4b9c-9b55-de03a6c34e06 (old id 653197)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 15:25:24
date last changed
2022-01-28 05:16:11
@article{795ed01f-7f15-4b9c-9b55-de03a6c34e06,
  abstract     = {{Recurrent major depressive disorder with regular seasonal patterns, commonly known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD), has evoked substantial research in the last two decades. It is now recognised that SAD is a common condition with prevalence rates between 0.4% and 2.9% of the general population, and that patients with SAD experience significant morbidity and impairment in psychosocial function. There is good evidence that bright light therapy and antidepressant medications are effective for the short-term treatment of SAD; however, given that SAD is characterised by recurrent major depressive episodes, long-term and maintenance treatment must be considered. Unfortunately, there are few studies of longer term (> 8 weeks) and maintenance (preventative) treatments for SAD. The weight of evidence suggests that light therapy usually needs to be continued daily throughout the winter season because of rapid relapse when light is stopped too early in the treatment period. However, some studies support the use of antidepressants to continue the response from a brief (1-2 weeks) course of light therapy early in the depressive episode, as soon as the first symptoms emerge in autumn. Only small studies have examined preventative treatment (before onset of symptoms) with light therapy, all of which have methodological limitations. The best evidence for preventative treatment in SAD comes from antidepressant studies. Three large, randomised, placebo-controlled studies have shown that preventative treatment with bupropion XL reduces the recurrence rate of depressive episodes in patients with SAD. Given the limitations in the evidence base and the inconsistent recurrence rate of winter depressive episodes, clinical recommendations for long-term and preventative treatment must individualise treatment choices and weigh potential benefits against possible adverse effects.}},
  author       = {{Westrin, Åsa and Lam, Raymond W}},
  issn         = {{1172-7047}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{11}},
  pages        = {{901--909}},
  publisher    = {{Adis International}},
  series       = {{CNS Drugs}},
  title        = {{Long-term and preventative treatment for seasonal affective disorder}},
  volume       = {{21}},
  year         = {{2007}},
}