Efficacy of sertraline in the treatment of major depressive disorder smong adult population: a systematic review

Abstract

With an increasing prevalence of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) throughout the past few years, it has been crucial to examine the effectiveness of antidepressants in order to treat and manage such conditions. Due to the complex heterogenicity in terms of the pathophysiology of such psychiatric disorders, assessing the clinical effectiveness of available pharmacological interventions is of concern. The aim of the systematic review is to investigate the efficacy of an FDA approved antidepressant, Sertraline in the treatment of MDD in adult population. A literature search of Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) was performed in PubMed based on a prespecification of eligibility criteria in order to extract studies evaluating and comparing the efficacy of Sertraline in patients with clinically diagnosed MDD either with another antidepressant or placebo. Risk of bias as well as methodological qualities of each individual study was also assessed in order to address the qualities of studies incorporated.