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US suicide rates fell as fluoxetine prescriptions increased

Press release from PLoS medicine

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US suicide rates fell as fluoxetine prescriptions increased

Suicide rates in the US fluctuated from the early 1960s until 1988, after which they showed a gradual decline that might have been linked to the introduction of the antidepressant fluoxetine (Prozac), according to a new study in PLoS Medicine.

Michael Milane and colleagues (University of California, Los Angeles) analyzed suicide rates in the US general population from 1960-2002. Suicide rates fluctuated between 12.2 and 13.7 per 100,000 until 1988, and then gradually fell, with the lowest value of 10.4 per 100,000 in 2000.

The researchers also analyzed data on prescriptions of fluoxetine, which was introduced in 1988. There was an increase in the number of fluoxetine prescriptions, from about 2.5 million in 1988 to over 33 million in 2002.

Mathematical tests showed that the steady decline in suicides was statistically associated with the increased number of fluoxetine prescriptions (the more prescriptions, the fewer suicides). The authors hypothesize that fluoxetine might have saved 33,600 lives since its introduction.

Milane and colleagues acknowledge that the association they found between the fall in suicides and the introduction of fluoxetine cannot prove that the medication caused the fall. There may have been other reasons why the suicide rate declined.

Nevertheless, they argue that their findings are helpful in shedding light on the ongoing debate about whether fluoxetine (and other "SSRI antidepressants") might trigger an increase in suicide. "Although the current issue concerning antidepressants and suicidality requires further examination," they say, "we believe that many more lives have been saved than lost since the advent of these drugs."

In a commentary on the new study, Bernhard Baune and Philippa Hay (James Cook University, Australia), who were not involved in the study, say that the type of study performed by Milane and colleagues cannot prove for certain "whether antidepressants do harm or good at a population level." Nevertheless, they say that the study "does not support an association between increased suicide and increased fluoxetine prescription rates."

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The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Dana Foundation (there was no funding from any pharmaceutical company).

Citation: Milane MS, Suchard MA, Wong ML, Licinio J (2006) Modeling of the temporal patterns of fluoxetine prescriptions and suicide rates in the United States. PLoS Med 3(6): e190.

PLEASE ADD THE LINK TO THE PUBLISHED ARTICLE IN ONLINE VERSIONS OF YOUR REPORT: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0030190

PRESS-ONLY PREVIEW OF THE ARTICLE: http://www.plos.org/press/plme-03-06-licinio.pdf

CONTACT:
Corresponding author:
Julio Licinio MD
Professor and Chairman
Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

To arrange an interview with Dr Licinio, please contact:
Jeanne Antol Krull
Director of Media Relations
Office of Communications
University of Miami School of Medicine
1-305-243-4853
jkrull@miami.edu

Related PLoS Medicine Perspectives article:

Citation: Baune B, Hay P (2006) Suicide rates and antidepressant prescribing: A casual or causal relationship? PLoS Med 3(6): e220.

PLEASE ADD THE LINK TO THE PUBLISHED ARTICLE IN ONLINE VERSIONS OF YOUR REPORT: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0030220

PRESS-ONLY PREVIEW OF THE ARTICLE: http://www.plos.org/press/plme-03-06-hay.pdf

CONTACT:
Phillipa Hay
James Cook University
Department of Psychology
Faculty of Medicine
Health and Molecular Sciences
Townsville, QLD 4811, Australia
61-7-47815465
phillipa.hay@jcu.edu.au

About PLoS Medicine

PLoS Medicine is an open access, freely available international medical journal. It publishes original research that enhances our understanding of human health and disease, together with commentary and analysis of important global health issues. For more information, visit http://www.plosmedicine.org

About the Public Library of Science

The Public Library of Science (PLoS) is a non-profit organization of scientists and physicians committed to making the world's scientific and medical literature a freely available public resource. For more information, visit http://www.plos.org


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