Am J Psychiatry 1981; 138:1302-1307
Copyright © 1981 by American Psychiatric Association
Heterogeneity of amphetamine response in depressed patients
EK Silberman, VI Reus, DC Jimerson, AM Lynott and RM Post
There is considerable diversity of opinion as to the nature of the response
of depressed patients to amphetamine infusion. The authors report on the
clinical response of 18 endogenously depressed patients to double-blind,
intravenous administration of amphetamine or saline. Although the drug
produced activation, mood elevation, and recall of emotionally charged
material in the group as a whole, there was considerable heterogeneity of
response as well as a tendency for response dimensions to vary
independently of one another. The heterogeneity of clinical response may be
associated with differences in underlying clinical, biological, and genetic
variables in affectively ill patients.
