ABSTRACT
Objeetive To investigate the effectiveness and safety of agomelatine for the treatment of elderly patients with post-stroke depression.Methods A total 80 elderly patients with post-stroke depression were randomly divided into either an agomelatine group or a sertraline group.The Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD),National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and Barthel Index were used to evaluate the patients before and after 1,2,4,and 6 weeks,respectively.Results HAMD,NIHSS,and Barthel index scores were improved significantly after treatment in the agomelatine group (n =38) and the sertraline group (n =42).There were significant improvement in the scores of HAMD,NIHSS and Barthel Index with time in both groups (all P ＜0.001).There were no significant difference in the scores of HAMD and NIHSS at different time points after treatment between the agomelatine group and the sertraline group,and the Barthel Index scores began to have significance difference from the fourth week after treatment (all P ＜ 0.05).Conclusions The efficacy of agomelatine for the treatment of PSD is almost the same as sertraline,and the effect of improving activities of daily living is better than sertraline.The safety of both agomelatine and sertraline is good.