Depression in elderly people treated with amineptine (Survector 100): a synopsis

Aging is one of the most important current problems. In fact, according to statistics, the elderly population of the world is continuously increasing, and depression represents the most frequent psychiatric problem in the aged. It is well known that the antidepressive treatment of the aged imposes particular problems because of the frequent presence of cardiovascular problems, ocular hypertension, and prostatic hypertrophia. Amineptine (Survector 100) is devoid of anticholinergic and cardiotoxic effects. For this reason we have studied it in the treatment of elderly depressed patients. This study comes from a multicenter clinical trial (32 hospital centers) in which 324 patients were recruited; it includes 63 depressed patients over the age of 60 years. The diagnosis of depression was stated according to DSM-III diagnostic criteria and INSERM classification, and assessed by Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) (26 items). The patients were treated with amineptine (200 mg/day) for 39.3 days (mean). The overall clinical efficacy was positive in 68% of cases; the clinical judgment was confirmed by a decrease in the mean score of HDRS (after the 7th day). The good acceptability (clinical, cardiovascular) was also confirmed. The different biochemical parameters were generally not modified during the treatment. Amineptine appeared to be an antidepressant treatment that combines efficacy and a very good level of safety, essential qualities for the treatment of elderly depressed patients.