Long-term antidepressant medication use may not help patients over the long haul, study says

After a period of time, antidepressant use in individuals with depression was not associated with better health-related quality of life, (HRQoL), compared to those with depression who did not take medications.

The researchers analyzed data from the 2005-2015 United States’ Medical Expenditures Panel Survey (MEPS), a type of longitudinal study that tracks the health services Americans use. During the time of the study, the authors found that 17.47 million adult patients were diagnosed with depression each year with two years of follow-up and 57.6% of those were treated with antidepressant medications. 

The investigators looked at the results of the mental component of the SF-12, a survey that tracks health-related quality of life. The release stated that they noted a positive change with the use of antidepressants however, the change in quality of life reported among those on the medication for over two years, was not significantly different from that reported among those not treated with antidepressants.