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The hospital charts of 17 patients with post-stroke depression who were treated with either dextroamphetamine or methylphenidate during a 5-year period at the Massachusetts General Hospital were examined. Eighty-two percent of the patien ts showed improvement after psychostimulant treatment. Forty-seven percent of all patients showed marked or moderate improvement in depressive symptoms. The authors saw no significant differences in efficacy between the two psychostimulants or across th e diagnostic categories for depression. Patients improved quickly, usually within the first 2 days of treatment. Adverse reactions necessitating the termination of psychostimulant treatment occurred in three patients. Anorexia was not observed as a sid e effect of either dextroamphetamine or methylphenidate treatment. Psychostimulants appear to be a safe and rapidly effective alternative to tricyclic antidepressants in inpatients with post-stroke depression. |
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