ANTIDEPRESSANTS have little to no benefit for back pain and sciatica, researchers from Neuroscience Australia (NeuRA) and the University of NSW (UNSW) have found.
According to the study published in the Cochrane Library, antidepressants may do more harm than good for people with low back pain, which impacts more than four million Australians.
Researchers reviewed evidence from 26 randomised controlled trials involving more than 2,900 participants with low back pain or sciatica, that tested an antidepressant medicine.
The results showed that one class of antidepressant medicines reduce back pain intensity and improve function, although effects were trivial.
"We found that one class of antidepressants might provide back pain relief, but the effects are small and come with an increased risk of unwanted side effects," explained lead author and doctoral candidate at Centre for Pain IMPACT, NeuRA, and the School of Health Sciences UNSW, Michael Ferraro.
The findings also showed with that tricyclic antidepressants likely have little to no effect on low back pain,and for sciatica specifically, the evidence was too preliminary to allow any conclusions.
"The long-term benefits and harms of most antidepressants for low back pain and sciatica remain unknown," Ferraro said.
"Large, high-quality clinical trials of serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors and tricyclic antidepressants are urgently needed to inform treatment of sciatica," the study concluded.
Researchers hope their findings may inform future clinical guidelines and help clinicians and patients to make better decisions about their treatment.
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