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Patients' risks for relapse increase when lithium or antipsychotic medications are discontinued rapidly rather than gradually. To compare rapid (1–7 days) versus slow (≥14 days) discontinuation of antidepressants, researchers in Sardinia followed 398 patients with recurrent major depressive disorder (n=224), panic disorder (n=75), bipolar II disorder (n=62), or bipolar I disorder (n=37). Follow-up lasted at least 1 year (mean, 2.8 years; mean length of antidepressant treatment, 8.5 months).
In this observational study, the treating clinicians or the patients had chosen to discontinue medications when patients were clinically well; antidepressants were withdrawn rapidly in 188 patients and gradually in 210. Rapid discontinuation was associate…