While physicians "have more than 20 medications to choose from when prescribing a treatment for depression, there's still little way to know which" medicine "will work for a particular person. Many people need to try two or three" medications "before experiencing relief."

The Times points out that "the most effective way for a doctor to find an antidepressant that works is to look at the patient's history, because someone who has already been treated for depression will often respond to a medication that worked before."

While "cost has become less of a concern now that most antidepressants are available in generic form for less than $20 a month...the decision usually comes down to side effects." Current "practice guidelines from the American Psychiatric Association suggest that people with atypical depression...tend to do better with" selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or monoamine oxidase inhibitors "than with tricyclics."

Related Links:

- "Treating depression can be hit or miss," Devon Schuyler, Los Angeles Times, August 3, 2009.