Comparative efficacy and acceptability of 12 new-generation antidepressants: a multiple-treatments meta-analysis
Escitalopram was one of the least-discontinued antidepressants in this analysis - what side effects, if any, most often make your patients stop it?
Well-supported by good-quality research. how we score evidence
Caveat on this rating: Funding statement could not be retrieved (paywalled full text), so funding is recorded as unknown; superseded in scope by the same group's 2018 analysis.
Across 117 randomised trials with 25,928 adults, escitalopram was among the four most effective of 12 newer antidepressants and, with sertraline, had the best acceptability profile (fewest people stopping treatment).
Worth asking
Escitalopram was one of the least-discontinued antidepressants in this analysis - what side effects, if any, most often make your patients stop it?
What it is FDA approved for
Read off the label. Trial duration and approval year are shown only where they were recorded — never inferred.
- Major depressive disorder (adults and pediatric patients 12 years and older)
- Generalized anxiety disorder (adults and pediatric patients 7 years and older)
Source
Comparative efficacy and acceptability of 12 new-generation antidepressants: a multiple-treatments meta-analysis — Cipriani A, et al. (2009)
Top-tier peer-reviewed journal
Read the source: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(09)60046-5
DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(09)60046-5
How this was scored
- Study design
- Meta-analysis of randomised trials
- Funding
- Funding not disclosed
- Published in
- Top-tier peer-reviewed journal
- Sample size
- 25,928
- Preregistered
- No
- Conflicts disclosed
- No
- Independent of proponent
- not recorded
- Retracted
- No
Read the full scoring rubric, including what it can't tell you.
Published August 19, 2026.
Questions
How strong is the evidence behind this?
Resolv rates this source "strong evidence". Well-supported by good-quality research. It scores 73 out of 100 on our published rubric. One caveat travels with that badge: Funding statement could not be retrieved (paywalled full text), so funding is recorded as unknown; superseded in scope by the same group's 2018 analysis. The score is calculated from recorded facts about the source — study design, funding, publication venue, sample size, preregistration — not typed in by an editor.
What is the source for this?
Comparative efficacy and acceptability of 12 new-generation antidepressants: a multiple-treatments meta-analysis — Cipriani A, et al. (2009). Published in: Top-tier peer-reviewed journal. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(09)60046-5. The full source is linked on this page so you can read it yourself.
Who paid for this research, and does that matter?
Study design: Meta-analysis of randomised trials. Funding: Funding not disclosed. Independence from the proponent is not recorded. Industry sponsorship is one of the most reliably measured biases in medicine, which is why funding carries real weight in the score rather than sitting in a footnote.
Is escitalopram (Lexapro, Cipralex), lexapro, cipralex FDA approved?
Yes — FDA approved for Major depressive disorder (adults and pediatric patients 12 years and older), Generalized anxiety disorder (adults and pediatric patients 7 years and older). Approval is for a specific indication, not for everything the drug is prescribed for.
Is this medical advice?
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.