Do venlafaxine XR and paroxetine equally influence negative and positive affect?

We assessed the therapeutic effects of venlafaxine XR and paroxetine on mood and anxiety symptoms derived from the tripartite model of mood. We hypothesized that the two antidepressants would have largely similar effects on symptoms of negative affect because both agents influence serotonergic syste...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of affective disorders 2005-04, Vol.85 (3), p.333-339
Main Authors: Dichter, Gabriel S., Tomarken, Andrew J., Freid, Cathryn M., Addington, Stephanie, Shelton, Richard C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Affect - drug effects
Anhedonia
Antidepressive Agents, Second-Generation - therapeutic use
Anxiety Disorders - diagnosis
Anxiety Disorders - drug therapy
Anxiety Disorders - psychology
Biological and medical sciences
Cyclohexanols - therapeutic use
Delayed-Action Preparations
Depression
Depressive Disorder, Major - diagnosis
Depressive Disorder, Major - drug therapy
Depressive Disorder, Major - psychology
Female
Humans
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Neuropharmacology
Paroxetine
Paroxetine - therapeutic use
Personality Assessment
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Psychoanaleptics: cns stimulant, antidepressant agent, nootropic agent, mood stabilizer..., (alzheimer disease)
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopharmacology
Regression Analysis
Serotonin Uptake Inhibitors - therapeutic use
Treatment Outcome
Tripartite model
Venlafaxine Hydrochloride
Venlafaxine XR
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Summary:We assessed the therapeutic effects of venlafaxine XR and paroxetine on mood and anxiety symptoms derived from the tripartite model of mood. We hypothesized that the two antidepressants would have largely similar effects on symptoms of negative affect because both agents influence serotonergic systems. However, based on evidence indicating linkages between catecholaminergic activity and the emotional dimension of positive affect, we hypothesized that the catecholaminergic effects of venlafaxine XR would yield particularly pronounced effects on symptoms of positive affect. Twenty depressed outpatients were randomly assigned to treatment with either venlafaxine XR (225 mg/day) or paroxetine (30 mg/day) during a 12-week treatment trial. Weekly mood ratings were collected using the Mood and Anxiety Symptom Questionnaire [Watson, D., Clark, L.A., Weber, K., Assenheimer, J.S., Strauss, M.E., McCormick, R.A., 1995. Testing a tripartite model: II. Exploring the symptom structure of anxiety and depression in student, adult, and patient samples. J. Abnorm. Psychol. 104 (1), 15–25] [Watson, D., Weber, K., Assenheimer, J.S., Clark, L.A., Strauss, M.E., McCormick, R.A., 1995. Testing a tripartite model: I. Evaluating the convergent and discriminant validity of anxiety and depression symptom scales. J. Abnorm. Psychol. 104 (1), 3–14]. Consistent with predictions, analyses revealed that there were no significant differences between venlafaxine XR and paroxetine on measures of negative affect. However, contrary to predictions, the two medications produced similar changes on measures of positive affect. Replication and extension using a larger sample size are mandated. These preliminary results suggest that two antidepressants that appear to have dissimilar mechanisms of action may nevertheless have similar effects on the positive and negative affective components of depression. Alternatively, paroxetine may have a clinically relevant noradrenergic effect at the dose tested.
ISSN:0165-0327
1573-2517
DOI:10.1016/j.jad.2004.10.007