Anti-depressant effect of certain phenothiazine combinations

Summary and Conclusions

A controlled study employing a rather rigid research design was conducted to determine if combinations of chlorpromazine of similar phenothiazines, with diethazine or congeners, possessed any cerebral-stimulating or anti-depressant properties. This study was conducted on 38 patients; and the results indicate that the combination of chlorpromazine or congeners with diethazine or congeners as reported here has a very definite anti-depressant effect which is most marked in neurotic depressions. The amount of relief given by these combinations, and the lapse of time in which the improvement is manifested, compare favorably with electric shock therapy. It is concluded, however, that electric convulsive therapy is more effective and more generally applicable in manicdepressive, depressed patients and “involutional” depressions, than these phrenopraxic combinations.