ArticleBMJ (Clinical research ed.)2013
QT interval and antidepressant use: a cross sectional study of electronic health records.
Article in BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 96 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
96 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 303 citations in OpenAlex.
- Antidepressant use and the risk of atrial fibrillation and ventricular arrhythmia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2026Pooled it
- Comparative efficacy and safety of antidepressant therapy for the agitation of dementia: A systematic review and network meta-analysis.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2023Pooled it
- Associations of Antidepressants With Atrial Fibrillation and Ventricular Arrhythmias: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2022Pooled it
- Pharmacological Augmentation in Unipolar Depression: A Guide to the Guidelines.The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology · 2020Pooled it
- Is the Chinese medicinal formula Guipi Decoction () effective as an adjunctive treatment for depression? A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Chinese journal of integrative medicine · 2017Pooled it
- Risk factors for QTc-prolongation: systematic review of the evidence.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2017Pooled it
- The use of statins for the treatment of depression in patients with acute coronary syndrome.Translational psychiatry · 2015Trial
- Trial
- Changes in QTc interval in the citalopram for agitation in Alzheimer's disease (CitAD) randomized trial.PloS one · 2014Trial
- An open-label, single-arm, dose-escalating concentration-QT study to investigate the cardiac effects and safety of paroxetine in healthy adults.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2026Article
- From In Vitro Genotoxicity Assays to Human Biomarkers: Interpreting DNA Damage Signals in Long-Term SSRI Therapy through a Translational Neurotoxicology Lens.Neurotoxicity research · 2026Review
- Sex and gender in depression after percutaneous coronary intervention: clinical patterns, mechanistic hypotheses, and care pathways.Frontiers in public health · 2026Review
- Mechanisms and Clinical Implications of the Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)-Cardiovascular Disease Link.Cureus · 2025Review
- Psychiatric Medications and QTc Prolongation in the Pediatric Population.Journal of the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry = Journal de l'Academie canadienne de psychiatrie de l'enfant et de l'adolescent · 2025Article
- Visual Thinking to Explore "Relational Pharmacology": Systemic Maps for Managing Non-Selective Antidepressants in Cardiovascular Prevention.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Vortioxetine Can Be Used Safely to Treat Depression After Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator Implantation for Congenital Long QT Syndrome: A Case Report.Neuropsychopharmacology reports · 2025Article
- The Association Between Antidepressant Treatment and Heart Rate Deceleration Capacity in Patients With Mood disorders-A Potential New Predictor of Sudden Cardiac Death.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2025Article
- Cardiovascular disease and depression: a bidirectional relationship and its clinical implications.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Review
- Review of drug-drug interactions in patients with prostate cancer.Journal of oncology pharmacy practice : official publication of the International Society of Oncology Pharmacy Practitioners · 2024Review
- Age of onset for increased dose-adjusted serum concentrations of antidepressants and association with sex and genotype: An observational study of 34,777 individuals.European journal of clinical pharmacology · 2024Observational
36 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo quantify the impact of citalopram and other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors on corrected QT interval (QTc), a marker of risk for ventricular arrhythmia, in a large and diverse clinical population.
designA cross sectional study using electrocardiographic, prescribing, and clinical data from electronic health records to explore the relation between antidepressant dose and QTc. Methadone, an opioid known to prolong QT, was included to demonstrate assay sensitivity.
settingA large New England healthcare system comprising two academic medical centres and outpatient clinics.
participants38,397 adult patients with an electrocardiogram recorded after prescription of antidepressant or methadone between February 1990 and August 2011.
main outcome measuresRelation between antidepressant dose and QTc interval in linear regression, adjusting for potential clinical and demographic confounding variables. For a subset of patients, change in QTc after drug dose was also examined.
resultsDose-response association with QTc prolongation was identified for citalopram (adjusted beta 0.10 (SE 0.04), P<0.01), escitalopram (adjusted beta 0.58 (0.15), P<0.001), and amitriptyline (adjusted beta 0.11 (0.03), P<0.001), but not for other antidepressants examined. An association with QTc shortening was identified for bupropion (adjusted beta 0.02 (0.01) P<0.05). Within-subject paired observations supported the QTc prolonging effect of citalopram (10 mg to 20 mg, mean QTc increase 7.8 (SE 3.6) ms, adjusted P<0.05; and 20 mg to 40 mg, mean QTc increase 10.3 (4.0) ms, adjusted P<0.01).
conclusionsThis study confirmed a modest prolongation of QT interval with citalopram, and identified additional antidepressants with similar observed risk. Pharmacovigilance studies using electronic health record data may be a useful method of identifying potential risk associated with treatments.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.