Actos Boosts Effectiveness of Anti-Depressant SSRI Drugs

By Top Class Actions | May 3, 2012

Category: Pharmaceuticals

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By Scott Hardy

A new study released online by Neuropsychopharmacology states that patients who were given Actos (pioglitazone, a drug used to treat Type 2 diabetes) and an SSRI anti-depressant drug, in this case Celexa (citalopram), reported lower symptoms of depression after six weeks. This could have a large impact on the psychological care and treatment of patients battling depression as a large proportion of patients treated with available antidepressant drugs fail to respond to medication. If it turns out that those patients could be treated by pairing Actos (pioglitazone) with an SSRI drug like Zoloft or Celexa there could be a dramatic change in how major depressive disorder (MDD) is treated. Adding Actos as part of the treatment plan for those in the study was effective whether the patients has diabetes or not.

This could also result in a new line of revenue for Takeda Pharmaceuticals as they’re working to release Nesina, which is due to replace Actos, after their patent for Actos expires within the next few months and becomes available as a generic drug. There are a large number of concerns which must be addressed before this could ever become an approved treatment for MDD in the U.S. There are already concerns that SSRI drugs like Zoloft and Celexa may cause birth defects if taken while pregnant. When you couple the concern of birth defects, with the studies which show that Actos increases the risk of bladder cancer by those who took it for more than one year by 40%, the risk versus the reward may not be worth it. Obviously that will be a very hard decision that will have to be made with the patient’s doctor.

Actos attorneys around the country are investigating claims that Actos causes bladder cancer and tumors. If the treatment of pairing an SSRI drug with Actos becomes approved, or even used as an “off label” therapy, the number of people at risk of developing cancerous bladder tumors could increase within just one year. That being said, we are years away from this type of treatment being approved in the US but it could be a positive sign for those suffering with depression who haven’t been able to treat it medically in the past.

If you would like more information about filing an Actos bladder cancer class action lawsuit or an Actos bladder tumor personal injury lawsuit just go to the Actos Bladder Cancer Class Action Lawsuit Investigation page. There you can submit your information to attorneys who are actively investigating all claims regarding tumors, heart attacks and other problems which may be attributed to Actos. These attorneys are also investigating claims that Zoloft and other antidepressant SSRI drugs may cause birth defects. You can read the full study on Actos’ effect on SSRI drugs here.

Updated May 3rd, 2012

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