News Release

LA BioMed researchers find lower response rates to antidepressants with African-Americans, Latinos

Study suggests additional treatment may be necessary

Peer-Reviewed Publication

LA BioMed

TORRANCE (Nov. 13, 2007) – Drawing from data in the nation's largest real-world study of treatment-resistant depression, a team led by researchers at Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed) reported in November’s Medical Care journal that African-Americans and Latinos didn’t respond as well as whites to medication for their depression.

The study suggests that the lower response rates may stem from differences in socioeconomic background – rather than race or ethnicity per se. When some of the socioeconomic and health disparities present when subjects entered the study were taken into account, the researchers found the response to antidepressant medications was more similar among all groups.

Dr. Ira Lesser, a LA BioMed investigator who authored the report along with a team of researchers including LA BioMed investigator Daniel B. Castro, said these findings suggest African-Americans and Latinos from lower socioeconomic backgrounds may need more than medication to be treated successfully for depression.

“African Americans who suffer from depression had a much lower success rate with medication than whites, and Latinos did somewhat more poorly in response to medication,” Dr. Lesser said. “We found that these two groups tended to be more disadvantaged socioeconomically, had more medical problems, less education and higher unemployment rates. As a result, they may need more treatment, including talk therapy, to overcome their depression.”

Dr. Lesser and the team of researchers who authored the article, “Ethnicity/Race and Outcome in the Treatment of Depression,” based their findings on data collected for the Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D) study, the nation’s largest real-world study of treatment-resistant depression.

Over a seven-year period, STAR*D enrolled 4,041 outpatients, ages 18-75 years, from 41 clinical sites around the country, including more than 350 patients from Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. Participants represented a broad range of ethnic and socioeconomic groups. All participants were diagnosed with non-psychotic major depressive disorder and were already seeking care at one of these sites.

Before STAR*D, other studies had suggested African Americans and Latinos responded more quickly than whites to the older antidepressants, and as quickly as whites to modern antidepressants.

Lesser said most previous studies excluded patients who had other diagnosis, including additional medical conditions and problems with alcohol. STAR*D was a much larger study than any before it, and it sought to re-create real-world conditions by including patients with other problems. Lesser said those two factors may explain why the STAR*D trial found the differences in the response to medication among African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latinos.

“Clinicians need to be aware when they are treating African Americans and Latinos, particularly if they come from lower social economic groups, that these patients may need more than medication,” he said. “This holds true for treating any patient who does not respond to an initial trial of medication.”

The lifetime prevalence of major depression in the United States is estimated to be 16.2 percent, with considerable social and role impairment evident in the majority of patients. Previous studies found only minor differences in depression rates among African Americans, Latinos and whites. But various studies have found patients from lower social economic groups often have less access to mental health care, are less likely to be prescribed and to fill prescriptions for new antidepressants and are less likely to receive care beyond medications when compared to whites.

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Dr. Lesser is available for comment on this study. The article, entitled “Ethnicity/Race and Outcome in the Treatment of Depression,” may be obtained by email from lmecoy@issuesmanagement.com.

Medical Care, which published the study, is rated as one of the top ten journals in healthcare administration. It is devoted to all aspects of the administration and delivery of healthcare. This scholarly journal publishes original, peer-reviewed papers documenting the most current developments in the rapidly changing field of healthcare. It may be viewed at www.lww-medicalcare.com

About LA BioMed

Founded more than 55 years ago, LA BioMed conducts biomedical research, trains young scientists and provides community services, including childhood immunization, nutrition assistance and anti-gang violence programs. The institute’s researchers conduct studies in such areas as cardio-vascular disease, emerging infections, cancer, diabetes, kidney disease, dermatology, reproductive health, vaccine development, respiratory disorders, inherited illnesses and neonatology.

LA BioMed researchers have invented the modern cholesterol test, the thyroid deficiency test and a test to determine the carriers of Tay-Sachs disease, an inherited fatal disorder. One of the institute’s researchers also developed the paramedic model for emergency care, setting a precedent that transformed emergency medical services and became the basis for training paramedics across the country.

Among LA BioMed’s current research programs are a major effort to develop the next generation of antibiotics, new therapeutic and diagnostic approaches to lung disease, refining methods for earlier identification of Type II diabetes, studies in the relationship between cardiovascular and kidney diseases, development of enhanced breast cancer detection technology and a novel approach to treating several autoimmune diseases and certain solid tumors.

LA BioMed is an independent research institute that is academically affiliated with the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles. The institute is located on the campus of Harbor-UCLA Medical Center near Torrance. The institute has become an economic engine for the South Bay, pumping an additional $155 million into the local economy in 2005, according to a 2007 Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation report. It contributes to Los Angeles County’s economic viability while inventing the future of health care through its ground-breaking research, its training of the scientists of tomorrow and its service to the local community. Please visit our website at www.LABioMed.org


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