Antidepressant in the Treatment of Chronic Pain: A Case Report of Adult-Onset Still's Disease

Abstract

Adult-onset Still's disease (AOSD) is a rare multisystemic autoinflammatory disease with symptoms, including spiking fever, evanescent rash, arthralgia or arthritis, sore throat, lymphadenopathy, hepatosplenomegaly, and myalgia. The prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms in rheumatological diseases is quite high, which impacts social as well as occupational functioning. Depression and anxiety are known to be the most common psychiatric comorbidities in patients with arthritis and other rheumatological disorders. Here, we report the case of an adult white female with AOSD who showed improvement in symptoms of AOSD with monoclonal antibodies and steroids; however, significant worsening of pain along with depression & anxiety were noted. With the use of antidepressant serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI), specifically duloxetine, our patient was able to experience improvement in depression, anxiety, and pain.

A Comparative Study on Safety and Efficacy of Desvenlafaxine Versus Sertraline in Depression

“…It has been established that the primary choice in the management of depression is pharmacotherapy [5]. Antidepressants are also used to treat chronic pain, which can result in depression [6][7]. The prescriptions for treating depression mainly include second-generation antidepressants like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and other drugs that selectively target neurotransmitters [8].…”