The Effects of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors on Impulsivity in Young Adults with Major Depression in the Early Phase of Treatment

Objective: Whether selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) increase suicide risk, especially in young adults, is still a controversial issue. This study aimed to examine the change in impulsivity characteristics and to evaluate the relationship between impulsivity and suicidality in young adults with major depression who were started on SSRIs.Method: The study included 50 patients between the ages of 18-24 years with a diagnosis of major depression who were planned to start SSRIs. Participants were evaluated with the Beck Depression Scale, Beck Anxiety Scale, Young Mania Rating Scale, Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale, Barratt Impulsivity Scale, Daily Impulsivity Scale (DIS), and Go/No-Go Task (GNG) before and at the end of the first week of treatment.Results: Seventy percent of the patients (n: 35) completed the assessments at baseline and at the end of the first week. At the end of one-week there was a statistically significant decrease in the DIS (t=2.283, p=0.029) and commission errors in GNG (t=3.19, p=0.003). In addition, 7 out of 11 patients who had suicidal ideation at the first evaluation did not continue to have suicidal ideation at the end of the first week and there was a significant decrease in the severity of suicidal ideation at the end of the follow-up (W:132.0, p<0.001).Conclusion: One-week SSRI use in young adults resulted in a decrease in impulsivity in self-report scales assessing state impulsivity and in the GNG. It was observed that the severity of suicidal ideation decreased at the end of the one-week treatment period.