Common painkillers could help lift arthritis-related depression

An over-the-counter painkiller may help to relieve depression for people who have arthritis too, says research published in The American Journal of Medicine.

US scientists looked at data from people with osteoarthritis, some of whom took non-steroidal over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drugs, others who took a prescription drug called Celebrex and a final group who took a placebo for six weeks.

All of the groups reported fewer depressive symptoms at the end of the trial, but the effect was increased when people took the anti-inflammatories.

“This work suggests that anti-inflammatory agents may play a role in reducing the burden of depression,” says Dr Michael Farkouh, who led the group.

The implications

People with osteoarthritis are more than twice as likely to develop depression.

The study suggests that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs could easy depression because they relive pain or it may be that they have an independent positive impact on mental health.

Next steps

“The study does provide some evidence that at least one form of pain medication may help reduce depression among people with osteoarthritis,” says Prof David Walsh from Arthritis Research UK. “It also raises an interesting mechanistic question as to whether NSAIDs may have direct effects on mood, independent of their analgesic activity.”

More studies are needed before firm conclusions can be drawn but it could be an interesting new area of research.