The objective of this review was to evaluate the efficacy of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and SSRIs compared with other treatment modalities in preventing relapse after an episode of major depressive disorder (MDD). An Ovid MEDLINE and PsycINFO search (from 1987 to August 2017) was conducted using the following terms: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, antidepressants, depression, prevention, prophylaxis, relapse and MDD. Using predefined criteria, two authors independently selected and reached consensus on the included studies. Sixteen articles met the criteria: 10 compared the relapse rate of selective SSRIs with placebo or other SSRIs; one discussed the effectiveness of SSRIs plus psychotherapy, two compared SSRI tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), two were mainly composed of TCAs plus psychotherapy, and one compared SSRIs and serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). According to the included studies, the relapse risk in adults was lower when SSRIs were combined with psychotherapy. Results comparing SSRIs and SNRIs were inconclusive. TCAs may be equally as effective as SSRIs. Atypical antidepressants (mirtazapine and St John's Wort) had no significant difference in efficacy and remission rates compared with SSRIs. Escitalopram appeared to fare better in efficacy than other SSRIs, owing to a higher prophylactic efficacy and lower side effects; however, according to the current data, this difference was not significant. To conclude, this review provides evidence that continuing SSRIs for 1 year reduces risk of MDD and relapse. Furthermore, the combination of SSRIs and cognitive behavioural therapy may effectively reduce relapse. Escitalopram appeared to yield better results and fewer side effects than did other SSRIs or SNRIs. The effectiveness in reducing relapse of SSRIs was similar to that of TCAs and atypical antidepressants.

Mood stabilizers are used clinically for the management of bipolar disorder. Prophylactic therapy with mood stabilizers is the primary treatment for preventing depressive and manic relapses in bipolar patients once they are stabilized. In this study, we examined the relative efficacy of the three most commonly used mood-stabilizing agents: lithium (Li), valproic acid (VPA), and carbamazepine (CBZ), in preventing relapse episodes. A total of 225 patients with bipolar disorder were included in the present analysis. Patients taking Li, VPA, or CBZ were followed up for up to 124 months, until suffering a manic, mixed, or depressive episode (relapse), or until the end of the study/study termination (no relapse), whichever came first. The median unadjusted survival time was 36 months for patients taking VPA, 42 months for patients taking CBZ, and 81 months for patients taking Li. These results indicate that patients stayed longer on Li, suggesting that it might have been better tolerated than either CBZ or VPA. χ-Analysis showed that patients taking Li were significantly less likely to experience relapse during the observational period than patients taking either VPA or CBZ (P<0.05). A Cox regression model showed that the hazard of experiencing relapse was significantly predicted by the total number of depressive (P=0.007) and manic symptoms (P=0.02) assessed before the observation period. In addition, after controlling for symptom covariates, the hazard of experiencing relapse was 1.66 times (95% confidence interval 1.03-2.67) or 66% higher for patients taking VPA compared with patients taking Li (P=0.037). Although the hazard of experiencing relapse was higher for patients taking CBZ compared with those taking Li, the risk was not elevated by a significant amount. Notwithstanding the limitations of the naturalistic design of this study, the differences in relapse prevention and survival time observed in these medications show Li fairing relatively better in prophylactic therapy.