Scientists from the University of Sussex in Britain have found that antidepressants do not affect excitability
Because dementia is a syndrome in whichdegradation of memory and thinking occurs, and in a severe stage a person cannot perform daily activities, such people often have deep depression and increased excitability. Supportive care is often prescribed for these patients. And, despite the fact that antidepressants are not listed in the UK clinical guidelines for the treatment of dementia, doctors often prescribe them.
One of the most common is mirtazapine. Scientists decided to test how effective this drug is in combating anxiety in patients with dementia.
A group of 204 was created for the study.people with dementia, whose average age was 82 years, and then they were divided into two subgroups of 102 people. The study participants in the first group received mirtazapine for 12 weeks, the second group received a placebo. The procedure was repeated 12 weeks later.
As a result, mirtazapine was found to be useless.to combat depression and anxiety associated with dementia. Its effect was on the same level as the placebo. Moreover, in the group receiving the drug, more people died than in the group with a placebo: 7 and 1 people, respectively. According to scientists, in addition to being ineffective, mirtazapine is also dangerous. And it is worth stopping excitability and depression in dementia with its help only in extreme cases, when the possible benefits of the drug outweigh the harm.
Source: The Lancet