Current and Emerging Drugs Continue to Struggle for Patient Share in the Treatment of Major Depressiv...( Owing to Safety Escitalopram Will R...),Health

Owing to Safety, Escitalopram Will Remain as the Clinical Gold Standard

Treatment, According to a New Report from Decision Resources

WALTHAM, Mass., July 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Decision Resources, one of the world's leading research and advisory firms focusing on pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that a drug's long-term efficacy in preventing recurrence of depressive mood episodes in patients who suffer from major depressive disorder, is the attribute that most influences psychiatrists' prescribing decisions in the treatment of this disorder. Clinical data and expert opinion show that current and emerging therapies will continue to struggle for patient share through subtle differences in efficacy, tolerability and delivery.

The new report entitled Major Depressive Disorder: Long-Term Efficacy Would Differentiate a New Drug in the Crowded Antidepressant Market finds that if an agent preventing recurrence of depressive mood episodes superior to that of sales-leading Wyeth's Effexor XR were to be launched, it would earn a 25 percent patient share, according to surveyed psychiatrists. The report also finds that although Effexor XR is the sales leader in the major depressive disorder drug market, the current and future Decision Resources proprietary clinical gold standard treatment for the indication is escitalopram (Lundbeck's Cipralex/Seroplex; Forest's Lexapro).

Although escitalopram's efficacy is not the highest in our study, the drug outscored any other current therapy in the area of safety. Experts we interviewed explain that because the drug is an active metabolite, lower doses can be used, an advantage that results in safety benefits.

"Based on available data and expert opinion, we do not expect any therapy under development to displace escitalopram as the clinical gold standard for major depressive disorder," said Carlos Dedesma, Ph.D., analyst at Decision Resources. "Although some therapies in development hold pr
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