The safety and efficacy of escitalopram and sertraline in post-stroke depression: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract Objectives This study aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of escitalopram and sertraline in post-stroke depression (PSD) patients, to provide more reliable therapeutics for cardiovascular and psychiatric clinical practice. Methods We recruited 60 patients (aged 40–89 years old) with an ICD-10 diagnosis of PSD, who were then randomly assigned to two groups and treated with flexible doses of escitalopram (10 to 20 mg/day, n = 30) or sertraline (50 to 200 mg/day, n = 30) for consecutive 8 weeks, respectively. The 24-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-24), the 14-item Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA-14), the Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale (TESS), the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MOCA), and the Activity of Daily Living scale (ADL) were used to assess patients before, during, and after treatment for depression, anxiety, adverse effects, cognitive function, and daily living activities. Repeated measures ANOVA, the Mann–Whitney U test, the chi-square test (χ 2 ), or Fisher’s exact test was employed to assess baseline demographics, response rate, adverse effects rate, and changes in other clinical variables. Results Significant reduction in HAMD-24 and HAMA-14 scores was evaluated at baseline, as well as 1, 3, 4, 6, and 8 weeks of drug intervention ( p < 0.01). There was a significant group difference in post-treatment HAMD-24 scores ( p < 0.05), but no difference was observed in HAMA-14 scores ( p > 0.05). Further analysis showed a significant variance in the HAMD-24 scores between the two groups at the end of the first week ( p < 0.01). The incidence of adverse effects in both patient groups was mild, but there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups ( p < 0.05). The improvement in cognitive function and the recovery of daily living abilities were comparable between both groups ( p > 0.05). Conclusion Escitalopram and sertraline showed comparable efficacy for anxiety symptoms, cognitive function, and daily living abilities in PSD patients. In addition, escitalopram was more appropriate for alleviating depressive symptoms. To validate the conclusion, trials with a larger sample size are in demand in the future. The registration number is ChiCTR1800017373.