A comparative study of sertraline versus imipramine in postpsychotic depressive disorder of schizophrenia

Abstract

The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy and reliability of sertraline versus imipramine in the treatment of postpsychotic depressive disorder of schizophrenia. The diagnosis was based on DSM-IV research criteria. The Sympson-Angus Scale and SANS were performed in order to discriminate between depressive symptoms, the extrapyramidal side-effects of neuroleptics and the negative symptoms of schizophrenia. A 10-day placebo treatment period was applied to eliminate the possible influence of the placebo effect. The degree of severity of depression was determined using the Hamilton Depression Scale and the Clinical Global Impression Scale. The patients were randomly divided into two subgroups, each consisting of 20 people, who were given either 50 mg/day sertraline or 150 mg/day imipramine, and their progress was followed for 5 weeks. The diagnosis and treatment results were evaluated using the double-blind method. In conclusion, although both drugs were found to be effective, sertraline was found to be more advantageous than imipramine in terms of rapid onset of action; frequency, severity and duration of side-effects, and relapse risk of schizophrenia.