Celecoxib safe, effective for brucellosis-associated depression

(HealthDay)—Celecoxib seems safe and effective for treatment of depression due to acute brucellosis, according to a study published online May 26 in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics.

Sara Jafari, M.D., from the Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran, and colleagues conducted a randomized trial involving 40 outpatients with depression due to brucellosis with a Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score (HDRS) <19. Participants were randomized to eight weeks of treatment with celecoxib or placebo as an adjunct to antibiotic therapy.

The researchers observed a significant effect for time × treatment interaction on the HDRS score in repeated-measures analysis (P < 0.001). At the study end there was a significantly greater response to treatment in the celecoxib versus placebo group (50 versus 0 percent; P < 0.001). There were no serious adverse events.

"Celecoxib is a safe and effective treatment for brucellosis-associated depression when compared with placebo," the authors write. "Celecoxib was associated with fast improvement in depressive symptoms, which makes this drug a potentially useful augmentative strategy in patients with brucellosis."