Journal of International Psychiatry

[Abstract] Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of duloxetine combined with low dose mirtazapine in the treatment of depression complicated with somatic pain. Methods Eighty-four cases of depression combined with somatic pain in Liaocheng City No. 4 Peoples Hospital from January 2021 to December 2022 were divided into two groups according to the lottery method of randomization, 42 cases in the control group and 42 cases in the observation group. The control group was treated with duloxetine, and the observation group was treated with duloxetine combined with low-dose mirtazapine..Self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), self-rating depression scale (SDS), and simplified McGill pain questionnaire were compared between the two groups of patients before treatment and after 8 weeks of treatment. Results SAS scores and SDS scores were significantly lower in both groups after treatment than before treatment (P<0.05). However, SAS score and SDS score of observation group were significantly lower than those of control group after treatment (P<0.05).The McGill questionnaire pain rating index (PRI), visualanalogue scale (VAS), and pain intensity (PPI) were significantly lower in both groups after treatment than before (P<0.05). And all three scores in the observation group were significantly lower than those in the control group after treatment (P<0.05). Conclusion Duloxetine combined with low dose mirtazapine is more effective in improving anxiety, depression and relieving physical pain in the treatment of depression combined with somatic pain.

Key words Duloxetine; A small dose of mirtazapine; Depression; Somatic Pain