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Lithium Induces Rapid Relief of Depression in Tricyclic Antidepressant Drug Non-Responders

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

C. Dé Montigny ,
F. Grunberg ,
A. Mayer  and
J.-P. Deschenes
C. Dé Montigny*
Affiliation:
Département de psychiatrie, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montreal, Montréal, Canada H3C 3T8
F. Grunberg
Affiliation:
Département de psychiatrie, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montréal, hôpital Louis-H. Lafontaine, Montréal, Canada H1N 3M5
A. Mayer
Affiliation:
hôpital Louis-H. Lafontaine, Montréal, Canada H1N 3M5
J.-P. Deschenes
Affiliation:
Chef du Département de Médecine, hôpital Louis-H. Lafontaine, Montréal, Canada H1N 3M5
*
∗Correspondence to Centre de Recherche Psychiatrique, Hôpital L.H. Lafontaine, 7401 rue Hochelaga, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H1N 3M5
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Summary

Eight patients suffering from a major unipolar depression and having failed to respond to treatment for three weeks or more with tricyclic antidepressants were given lithium. All eight patients experienced a remarkable relief of their depression within 48 hours. This rapid antidepressant effect of lithium in ‘treatment-resistant’ patients might be due to the enhancement of the efficacy of the central serotoninergic system, unveiling the tricyclic antidepressant-induced sensitization of the serotoninergic postsynaptic receptors.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 138 , Issue 3 , March 1981 , pp. 252 - 256
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1981 

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