Various drugs including antihypertensives, anxiolytics, antibiotics, antidepressants,
corticosteroids, choline, indomethacin, levodopa, metronidazole, neuroleptics,
oral contraceptives, sulphonamides and physostigmine have been reported to produce depression
as a side effect. Clinically, these drug-induced depressions may go unnoticed and
thus create therapeutic problems. Although causal relationship is difficult to establish, depression
occurring during the course of drug treatment needs an evaluation of all the
medications that the patient has been receiving. We believe that postpsychotic depressions
include three types of depression: pendular depression — primarily disease related; chronic
depression - primarily environment related, and amine-depletion depression - drug related.
Thus, drug-induced depressions constitute a subgroup of postpsychotic depression. Clinically,
it is essential to carefully monitor patients receiving drugs known to produce depression.
Thus, prompt recognition of the drug-induced depressions may assist in initiating
proper therapeutic measures.