Published online by Cambridge University Press: 17 April 2020
Compare quetiapine+antidepressant (AD) with lithium+AD, and quetiapine monotherapy with lithium+AD in open, rater-blinded treatment.
Patients with treatment resistant depression (Thase et al 1997 stage 1 and 2) with severity of MADRS ≥25 received: quetiapine XR 300mg/day plus AD (SSRIs or venlafaxine) (n=229), lithium (monitored to between 0.6 to 1.0 meq/l) plus AD (n=221) or quetiapine XR alone (300mg/day) (n=225) for 6 weeks. Primary efficacy measure was change from baseline in MADRS total score. The pre-specified non-inferiority limit was 3 points on the MADRS.
Fewer patients discontinued on quetiapine+AD (15.2%) than lithium+AD (20.5%) and quetiapine monotherapy (21.5%). Quetiapine+AD and quetiapine monotherapy, were not inferior to lithium+AD in the primary (per protocol) analysis with a mean difference (97.5%CI) on the MADRS of -2.32 (-4.6 to -0.05) favouring add-on quetiapine and -0.97 (-3.24 to 1.31) favouring quetiapine monotherapy. This mandated superiority testing on the modified ITT population showing no significant difference at endpoint.
In a post hoc analysis discounting multiplicity, quetiapine+AD was significantly more effective than lithium+AD on the MADRS change from baseline, p=0.046. The advantage was observed at day 4 (p=0.007) and persisted throughout. Efficacy was supported by CGI-I (p=0.07). Quetiapine+AD showed a numerically greater advantage over lithium+AD in those with two failed treatments (Stage 2) rather than one (Stage 1).
Quetiapine+AD and quetiapine monotherapy, were non-inferior to lithium+AD in treatment resistant depression. There was an early significant and persistent efficacy advantage on MADRS for quetiapine augmentation compared with lithium augmentation of SSRI or venlafaxine treatment.
Comments
No Comments have been published for this article.