Pain management as an antidepressant: long-term resolution of pain-associated depression.

Of 100 consecutive patients admitted to a pain management program for patients without malignant disease who had chronic pain, 54 were definitely or probably depressed and 46 were not depressed by Research Diagnostic Criteria. As a result of 98% improvement of depression and low frequency (2%) of new development of depression, 98 of the original 100 patients were not depressed at the time of dismissal. This progress was maintained at long-term follow-up (average, 11.6 months): 89 of 100 patients remained non-depressed.