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Mianserin and chronic pain: a double‐blind placebo‐controlled process and outcome study
Author(s) -
Onghena P.,
Cuyper H.,
Houdenhove B.,
Verstraeten D.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0447.1993.tb03439.x
Subject(s) - mianserin , placebo , antidepressant , analgesic , chronic pain , depression (economics) , anesthesia , medicine , double blind , psychiatry , anxiety , alternative medicine , macroeconomics , pathology , economics
There is evidence that antidepressants may have an analgesic effect in chronic pain. To replicate this effect and to throw light on the processes involved, a 12‐week cross‐over double‐blind trial of mianserin versus placebo was carried out in 4 diagnostic groups: A) depressive patients without pain complaints ( n = 8), B) depressive patients with chronic organic pain ( n = 8), C) patients with somatoform pain disorder and vital signs of depression ( n = 11) and D) patients with chronic organic pain without depression ( n = 8). Although a mianserin‐induced antidepressant effect in group A was evident, no significant pain reduction was accomplished in any group. The reasons for this failure to replicate the antidepressant‐induced analgesic effect are discussed.