Depression is common after strokes. This is something that we can all relate to intuitively because a catastrophic event like a stroke is bound to affect one's emotions. A study published in the Medical Journal of Malaysia (April 2, 2013) reinforces this point and made me look up an article that had caught my attention a few months ago. In February 2011, the Lancet Neurology had published a study involving 113 patients with ischemic strokes and hemiplegia / hemiparesis, 57 of whom were treated with 20mg of Fluoxetine daily within five to eleven days of the stroke. At the end of three months, the researchers noted that those who had been treated with Fluoxetine (and physiotherapy) showed better motor recovery than those who received only physiotherapy.
When patients are depressed, they are unlikely to be motivated to do the post-stroke exercises that will help them recover motor function. While this may be a good reason to diagnose and treat depression after a stroke, the authors of this study also postulate that fluoxetine may have direct beneficial effects on neurons. It may turn out that antidepressants like fluoxetine are good for stroke recovery irrespective of whether the affected person is clinically depressed or not.
References:
1.
Prevalence of depression in stroke patients with vascular dementia in University Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre.
2.
Fluoxetine for motor recovery after acute ischemic stroke (FLAME): a randomised placebo-controlled trial.
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