Prediction of relapse with the TRH test and prophylactic amitriptyline in 39 patients with endogenous depression
- 1 August 1984
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Psychiatric Association Publishing in American Journal of Psychiatry
- Vol. 141 (8) , 945-948
- https://doi.org/10.1176/ajp.141.8.945
Abstract
The authors conducted a double-blind prospective study of 39 patients with unipolar endogenous depression who recovered after ECT [electroconvulsive therapy]. Thyrotropin (TSH)-releasing hormone (TRH) tests were performed before and after ECT. Patients were divided into 3 groups on the basis of their altered TSH response. Persistant remission was predicted for patients in group 1 (N = 15) and relapse was predicted for groups 2A (N = 13) and 2B (N = 11). Patients in groups 1 and 2A received placebo and those in group 2B received amitriptyline for 6 mo. Fewer relapses occurred in groups 1 and 2B than in group 2A (P < 0.05), showing that relapse can be predicted by the TRH test and prevented by amitriptyline.This publication has 1 reference indexed in Scilit:
- The thyrotropin response to thyrotropin-releasing hormone in endogenous depressionPsychoneuroendocrinology, 1981