Antidepressant pills raise risk of heart disease by a third

COMMON antidepressants may raise the risk of heart disease and an early death, a study suggests.

Almost a quarter of a million Britons were followed for over a decade and a link was found between people on the medication and heart disease.

For people on the common antidepressants known as SSRIS – selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors – such as citalopram, sertraline, fluoxetine and paroxetine, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease was 34 per cent higher than in people not on the pills, data show.

The risk of death from heart disease was also 87 per cent higher and the risk of death over the ten-year study duration from any cause was 73 per cent greater.

SSRIS are the most common form of antidepressants but other forms of the medication are available, such as mirtazapine, venlafaxine, duloxetine and trazodone. For these types of treatment, the risk of death from any cause more than doubled while the risk of heart disease increased by 86 per cent.

However, the data gathered by scientists at the University of Bristol also found antidepressants reduced the risk of diabetes and high blood pressure by 32 per cent and 23 per cent respectively.

“Antidepressants, and especially SSRIS, may have a good safety profile in the short term, but are associated with adverse outcomes in the long term,” the researchers said. “This is important because most of the substantial increase in prescribing in the past 20 or more years is in long-term repeat prescribing.”

Dr Narinder Bansal, the study’s lead author, said: “For anyone with any concerns about their long-term use of antidepressants, we urge them to talk to their GP … It is very important they do not stop taking them suddenly.”

The study is published in the British Journal of Psychiatry Open.