Prozac, the bestselling antidepressant taken by 40 million people worldwide,
does not work and nor do similar drugs in the same class, according to a
major review released today. The study examined all available data on the
drugs, including results from clinical trials that the manufacturers chose
not to publish at the time. The trials compared the effect on patients
taking the drugs with those given a placebo or sugar pill. When all the
data was pulled together, it appeared that patients had improved - but those
on placebo improved just as much as those on the drugs. The pattern they
saw from the trial results of fluoxetine (Prozac), paroxetine (Seroxat),
venlafaxine (Effexor) and nefazodone (Serzone) was consistent. "... we find
the overall effect of new-generation antidepressant medication is below
recommended criteria for clinical significance," they write.

"We're really quite despondent about the results," they added, then
mentioned something about heading home to down a few beers and play Russian
Roulette.

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