Quetiapine: novel uses in the treatment of depressive and anxiety disorders

Abstract

Importance of the field: Quetiapine, an atypical antipsychotic, has been approved for the treatment of schizophrenia, acute mania, bipolar depression and unipolar major depression. However, it is often used (off-label) to treat other depressive disorders and anxiety disorders in children and adults.

Areas covered in this review: This article reviews the evidence for the safety and efficacy of quetiapine in these populations, as both monotherapy and augmentation to other psychotropics.

What the reader will gain: This article provides an in-depth review of the published literature on the topic and also provides recommendations for use.

Take home message: There is strong evidence to support the use of quetiapine in major depressive and generalized anxiety disorders, and preliminary support for treatment-resistant and psychotic depression. There is reasonable evidence of its benefits as an augmenting agent in obsessive-compulsive disorder, while data in other anxiety disorders are limited but promising. While long-term tolerability data are limited, quetiapine appears well tolerated in the short-term. Further randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm the efficacy and tolerability of quetiapine, both short- and long-term, in many of these conditions.

Keywords::

• anxiety disorders
• atypical antipsychotics
• dopamine
• mood disorders
• quetiapine
• serotonin

Acknowledgements

The authors thank T da Silva for her assistance in the preparation of this manuscript. They also thank A Gendron for providing information on quetiapine from unpublished scientific presentations.

Notes

This box summarizes key points contained in the article.