A retrospective assessment of the long-term effects of dothiepin.

A hospital-based study reports the treatment with dothiepin hydrochloride (Prothiaden) of 237 depressed patients, some for over 2 years. Of the initial 237 patients a total of 84 patients had to be withdrawn from the study, over one third of these because of non-attendance. Only 26 (11.8%) of all patients failed to respond and 23 (9.7%) had to be withdrawn because of side effects, the commonest being dry mouth (6 patients) and drowsiness (4). The dosage required was between 75 and 225 mg/day with 75% of patients receiving between 125 and 150 mg/day. The majority of patients (75.2%) were well and off therapy by 9 months but a hard core of 30 patients (19.6%) required long-term therapy in excess of 2 years. The study showed dothiepin to be a well tolerated, safe and effective antidepressant with a special place in the treatment of chronic depressive states in inadequate personalities.