Methylphenidate in mildly depressed outpatients

Abstract

A double‐blind placebo‐controlled trial of methylphenidate (30 mg. per day) was conducted with 101 general practice and symptomatic volunteer patients diagnosed as mildly to moderately depressed with concomitant fatigue or apathy. Patient but not physician measures demonstrated significantly more improvement with methylphenidate than with placebo. More than 50 per cent of the patients reported side effects, somewhat unexpectedly. Patients on placebo reported side effects as frequently as did those on methylphenidate.