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Fictional patients used for illustrative purposes.

As a care-home worker and amateur theatre actor, it’s important for Peter to be able to focus on both his work and his hobby.

But recently, he’s been experiencing brain fog and has struggled to remember things. Last week, he forgot about a deadline for a job application, and he missed the deadline.

MDD and cognitive function:

In addition to mood and physical symptoms, most patients with MDD present with cognitive symptoms, such as trouble concentrating, indecisiveness and poor attention, which can affect their daily functioning2,3

Brintellix may help people like Peter improve their cognitive symptoms, helping them be more productive at work (vs. baseline)4

MDD, major depressive disorder.  

Patients receiving Brintellix experience improvements from baseline in cognition4

The AtWoRC study was an open-label, flexible dose study which assessed whether improvements in cognitive symptoms in Brintellix-treated patients correlated with increased work productivity in a real-life setting vs. baseline:4

  • Statistically significant improvements in cognition were observed at Week 52 vs. baseline (as measured on DSST; p<0.001, paired t test)
  • Patient-reported improvements in cognitive symptoms were significantly correlated with work productivity
  • Primary study endpoint was the partial correlation between changes in PDQ-D-20 and WLQ productivity loss scores at Week 12 - a significant association was seen for both ‘first treatment’ and ‘switch’ patients (r=0.606; p<0.001)*
Cognition: mean DSST score over 52 weeks (n=199)†
Adapted from: Chokka P et al. 2019.4 †Changes in DSST over 52 weeks of follow-up are shown; error bars indicate 95% confidence intervals.

*Correlation was assessed by the partial correlation coefficient adjusted for age, sex, baseline PDQ-D-20, baseline WLQ productivity loss, disease duration, and disease severity.

AtWoRC, Assessment in Work productivity and the Relationship with Cognitive symptoms; DSST, Digit Symbol Substitution Test; FAS, Full Analysis Set; PDQ-D-20, 20-item Perceived Deficits Questionnaire – Depression; WLQ, Work Limitations Questionnaire.

Brintellix demonstrates statistically significant improvements in cognitive function compared with placebo, and has a significant effect vs. other therapies vs. placebo5 (as measured by DSST)

Network meta-analysis of 12 randomised controlled trials comparing effects of various antidepressant classes vs. placebo on the DSST as a measure of cognitive dysfunction in patients with MDD:5

  • Brintellix was the only antidepressant class to show a statistically significant improvement on DSST vs. placebo (p<0.01)
  • SSRIs and MAOIs had a smaller effect on DSST than placebo, while TCAs negatively impacted cognitive function vs. placebo
  • DSST was a secondary outcome in 10 out of the 12 studies

Study limitations

Limitations of the meta-analysis include the large variability of the reported cognitive outcomes in the underlying randomised controlled trials.

Standardised effect size on DSST scores, relative to placebo
Adapted from: Baune BT et al. 2018.5 †Antidepressants assessed (analysable number of patients in brackets): SNRIs (duloxetine [n=707]), SSRIs (citalopram [n=84], escitalopram [n=54], fluoxetine [n=127], sertraline [n=240]), MAOIs (phenelzine [n=28]), TCAs (desipramine [n=9], nortriptyline [n=102]).

DSST, Digit Symbol Substitution Test; MAOI, monoamine oxidase inhibitor; MDD, Major Depressive Disorder; TCA, tricyclic antidepressant; SNRI, serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor; SSRI, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor.

For further information about Brintellix, including Tolerability, Special Warnings and Precautions and Contraindications, please visit the About Brintellix Section

about brintellix

Explore more in the sections below:

Adverse events should be reported.

Reporting forms and information can be found at http://www.mhra.gov.uk/yellowcard or search for MHRA Yellow Card in the Google Play or Apple App Store.
Adverse events should also be reported to Lundbeck Limited, Medical Information, on: 01908 638972 or Email: SafetyLuUnitedKingdom@lundbeck.com

References
  • Lundbeck. Brintellix. Summary of Product Characteristics GB and NI.
  • Conradi HJ et al. Psychol Med 2011;41: 1165-1174.
  • Greer TL et al. CNS Drugs 2010;24(4): 267-284.
  • Chokka P et al. CNS Spectr 2019;24:616–627.
  • Baune BT et al. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2018;21:97–107.
UK-BRIN-1283 | September 2023

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