The authors review several approaches that show promise for predicting
which antidepressant medication will be best for a particular patient and
for achieving maximum benefit from each drug. These include delineation of
clinical and historical characteristics associated with response to various
drugs, use of psychological tests, assessment of biochemical and
electroencephalographic parameters, evaluation of mood response to
amphetamine, determination of acetylator status, and measurement of plasma
tricyclic levels and degree of inhibition of platelet monoamine oxidase.
The authors believe that the use of these approaches may improve our
ability to help depressed patients.Abstract Teaser