Choosing the Right Antidepressant Just Got a Little Easier: What NPs Need to Know About the PETRUSHKA Trial
Psychiatry & Mental Health Choosing the Right Antidepressant Just Got a Little Easier: What NPs Need to Know About the PETRUSHKA Trial A new decision-support tool helped patients stay on their antidepressant longer and feel better at six months. Here's what it means for your prescribing practice. If you've ever stared at a list of SSRIs and SNRIs wondering which one will actually work for the patient sitting across from you, you're not alone. The antidepressant selection process has long been described as "educated trial and error," and for good reason—we've had limited tools to meaningfully guide that first-line choice. A large new randomized trial published in JAMA in March 2026 offers some encouraging evidence that a structured, personalized approach can improve outcomes. The Study at a Glance Cipriani and colleagues conducted a multicenter RCT across 47 sites in Brazil, Canada, and the UK, enrolling 540 adults aged 18–74 with major depressive disor...