Posted by speedofthought on April 7, 2005, at 10:12:59
Hello all,
I joined this board in an attempt to get some feedback about Lexapro and Celexa.
As you may know, Lexapro (escitalopram) is the s-enantiomer of Celexa (citalopram). They have the same mechanism of action. Lexapro is more selective and thus an equivalent dose is half that of Celexa.
I have been reviewing all randomized controlled studies that compare Lexapro to Celexa for efficacy and safety, as well as meta-analyses that compare Lexapro and Celexa. I will tell you without exaggeration that *every single* study that says that Lexapro is safer and more effective than Celexa is sponsored by the makers (Forest/Lundbeck) directly, or the main authors have significant financial ties.
I realize that most major trials are expensive and sponsored by companies these days, but it is disheartening to me to think that there's so little independent information out there.
OregonDERP reviewed one article that said that Lexapro was better, and one that said the two drugs were the same. (Third reviewed article made no direct comparison). The messages from those not associated with Forest/Lundbeck are mixed. As you may know, the UK came down on Forest for trying to say that Lexapro is better than Celexa (this was a while ago now).
In addition, generic forms of citalopram (Celexa) are now available at a fraction of the cost of branded Lexapro.
I would appreciate any comments from both patients and doctors. Your comments will not go into my research, I am just trying to get a general impression of what people think.
poster:speedofthought
thread:481097
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050404/msgs/481097.html