Results of New Survey Show Nearly Two Thirds of Surveyed Adults with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) Who Report Taking Their Medication as Prescribed Still Experience Symptoms at Least Weekly

Survey results also imply that expectations of treatment results among adults with MDD may be different than those of physicians^1,2

• Approximately 15 million adults in the U.S. live with MDD, and it is one of the most common mental disorders³.
• Of surveyed adults with MDD who report that they take their medication as prescribed, 61 percent say they still deal with MDD symptoms at least weekly⁴. These patients also report that symptoms can have a substantial impact on daily lives, including leading to missing work or school and inability to complete daily living tasks.
• About 7 in 10 surveyed psychiatrists and primary care providers² report that they are frustrated by the side effects their patients experience from their MDD medication, while 45 percent of surveyed adults with MDD report the same⁵.

PRINCETON, N.J. & DEERFIELD, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Results from a recent survey⁶ of adults with major depressive disorder (MDD), psychiatrists and primary care providers show that nearly two thirds of surveyed adults with MDD who self-report that they take their medication as prescribed say they still deal with MDD symptoms at least weekly (61 percent)⁴, implying that there may be a need for alternative treatment options that better address the symptoms of MDD.

The Living with MDD survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. and Lundbeck between April 21 and May 1, 2015, among 300 U.S. adults ages 18+ who self-report that they have been diagnosed with MDD by a healthcare professional and have taken an anti-depressant within the past year (“adults with MDD”); 150 U.S. psychiatrists who treat people with MDD (“psychiatrists”); and 152 U.S. primary care providers who treat people with MDD (“primary care providers”).⁷ Adults with MDD were recruited from online panels and invited by email to participate in the survey; their anonymity was maintained. Adults with MDD were not required to currently be on medication for their MDD symptoms in order to participate in the survey; 10 percent of the participants were not taking medication at the time of the survey.

“The symptoms of major depressive disorder can have a debilitating effect on all aspects of the lives of adults who suffer from the disease,” said Gerald A. Maguire, MD, DFAPA, professor and chair, psychiatry and neuroscience, University of California, Riverside School of Medicine. “Physicians work closely with their patients to find the treatment plans that are most effective, but unfortunately, even when patients take their medication as prescribed, many still deal with MDD symptoms frequently.”

Approximately 15 million adults in the U.S. live with MDD, making it one of the most common mental disorders³. Symptoms of MDD include persistent sad or anxious feelings, and can also include pessimism, and irritability, loss of interest in activities, fatigue and thoughts of suicide⁸. The majority of surveyed adults with MDD (56 percent) report that MDD is their most serious health concern. And in turn, of surveyed adults with MDD who currently take medication, 90 percent responded that they always take the medication exactly as prescribed.

Of this group, though, nearly two thirds (61 percent) report that they still deal with MDD symptoms at least once a week. Surveyed adults with MDD also report substantial impact of MDD on their daily lives, including, on average, taking almost two sick days from work or school in the last month (1.8 days) as well as having over six days where they have not been able to complete daily living tasks such as cooking, cleaning or paying bills (6.3 days), and more than two days where they have missed a social event due to their MDD (2.4 days).

While this sort of survey data sheds light on the severity of the disease, disparities exist between surveyed adults with MDD and physicians² with regard to satisfaction with treatment options, and survey results imply that although adults with MDD are still experiencing symptoms even when taking medication consistently, their expectation of treatment results may be different than those of physicians^1,2. Of surveyed adults with MDD who report that they take their medication as prescribed⁴ and report satisfaction with their treatment, 42 percent report still experiencing symptoms at least once a week and 26 percent say they experience symptoms several times a week or more.

Seventy three percent of surveyed psychiatrists and 54 percent of surveyed primary care providers agree that there are not enough medication options that work well enough to relieve their patients’ symptoms of MDD⁹. However, 40 percent of surveyed adults with MDD agreed with the same statement⁹.

Further, over half of surveyed adults with MDD (55 percent) agree that there have been a lot of ups and downs with their MDD medication, and the majority of psychiatrists (70 percent) and primary care providers (54 percent) report changing their MDD patients’ medication at least once a year, implying that they may be searching for treatment options that better address the symptoms of MDD and are tolerable for patients^3,9.

In addition to managing symptoms, physicians² work with their patients to reduce side effects of medication. About 7 in 10 surveyed psychiatrists (77 percent) and primary care providers (69 percent) report that they are frustrated by the side effects their patients experience from their MDD medication, while 45 percent of surveyed adults with MDD report the same⁵ – further implying that their expectations of treatment results may be different than those of physicians².

“Patients should speak with their physicians about treatment plans and how often they are continuing to experience symptoms of MDD,” said Dr. Maguire. “New treatment advances may be required to better manage their symptoms.”

For more information on the survey results and shareable resources, please visit LivingWithMajorDepressiveDisorder.com.

About the Living with MDD Survey

The Living with MDD survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. and Lundbeck between April 21 and May 1, 2015, among 300 U.S. adults ages 18+ who self-report that they have been diagnosed with MDD by a healthcare professional and have been on an anti-depressant in the past year (“adults with MDD”); 150 U.S. psychiatrists who treat at least 2 people with MDD per month (“psychiatrists”); and 152 U.S. primary care providers who treat at least 2 people with MDD per month (“primary care providers”). The survey did not attempt to interview the patients of the psychiatrists and primary care providers, and based on the anonymous nature of the survey, would not directly know that information. Any incidence of physician/patient-related respondents is purely coincidental. Adults with MDD were recruited from online panels and invited by email to participate in the survey; their anonymity was maintained. Adults with MDD were not required to currently be on medication for their MDD symptoms in order to participate in the survey; 10 percent of the participants were not taking medication at the time of the survey. Adults with MDD self-reported their diagnosis, medication and symptom history, which was not confirmed with a physician. Data for patients were not weighted and are only representative of those who completed the survey.

About Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.

Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. (OAPI) is an innovative, fast-growing healthcare company that commercializes Otsuka-discovered and in-licensed products in the U.S., with a strong focus on neuroscience, oncology, cardio-renal, and medical devices. For more information, visit www.otsuka-us.com.

OAPI is a subsidiary of Otsuka America, Inc. (OAI), a holding company established in the U.S. in 1989. OAI is wholly owned by Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., a global healthcare company with the corporate philosophy: 'Otsuka-people creating new products for better health worldwide.'

Otsuka Pharmaceutical is a leading firm in the challenging area of mental health and also has products and research programs for several under-addressed diseases including tuberculosis, a significant global public health issue. These commitments illustrate more powerfully than words how Otsuka is a “big venture” company at heart, applying a youthful spirit of creativity in everything it does.

Otsuka Pharmaceutical and its affiliates employ approximately 30,000 people globally, and the company welcomes you to visit its global website at: http://www.otsuka.co.jp/en/index.php.

About Lundbeck

Lundbeck is a global pharmaceutical company specialized in brain diseases. For more than 70 years, we have been at the forefront of research within neuroscience. Our key areas of focus are alcohol dependence, Alzheimer’s disease, bipolar disorder, depression/anxiety, epilepsy, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia and symptomatic neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (NOH).

An estimated 700 million people worldwide are living with brain disease and far too many suffer due to inadequate treatment, discrimination, a reduced number of working days, early retirement and other unnecessary consequences. Every day, we strive for improved treatment and a better life for people living with brain disease – we call this Progress in Mind. Read more at www.lundbeck.com/global/about-us/progress-in-mind.

In 2015, Lundbeck can celebrate its 100th anniversary. During the past century, millions of people have been treated with our therapies. It is complex and challenging to develop improved treatments for brain disease, but we keep our focus: There is still so much we need to achieve in the next 100 years to ensure a better life for people living with brain disease.

Lundbeck has approximately 6,000 employees in 57 countries who are engaged in the entire value chain throughout research, development, production, marketing and sales. Our pipeline consists of several late-stage development programmes and our products are available in more 100 countries. We have research centres in China, Denmark and the United States and production facilities in China, Denmark, France and Italy. Lundbeck generated core revenue of DKK 13.5 billion in 2014 (EUR 1.8 billion; USD 2.4 billion).

Lundbeck in the U.S.

In the U.S., Lundbeck employs more than 800 people focused solely on accelerating therapies for brain diseases. With a special commitment to the lives of patients, families and caregivers, Lundbeck US actively engages in hundreds of initiatives each year that support our patient communities. To learn more, visit us at http://www.lundbeck.com/us and connect with us on Twitter at @LundbeckUS.

Footnotes
1.	Conclusion is based on interpretation across multiple data points.
2.	Physicians (defined as the collective psychiatrists and primary care physicians who participated in this survey) were recruited through standard mail to participate in an online survey, relying on the American Medical Association (AMA) master file as the sampling frame. Raw data were weighted on the basis of years in practice, sex, and region to reflect the population of practicing U.S. psychiatrists and primary care physicians.
3.	The National Alliance of Mental Illness, Mental Illness Facts and Numbers. March 2013 http://www2.nami.org/factsheets/mentalillness_factsheet.pdf
4.	Patient subjects were recruited from online panels and invited by email to participate in the survey. Adults with MDD were not required to currently be on medication for their MDD symptoms in order to participate in the survey; 10 percent of the participants were not taking medication at the time of the survey. Adults with MDD self-reported their diagnosis, medication and symptom history, which was not confirmed with a physician.
5.	When asked what specific aspects of treatment frustrate the respondent.
6.	The Living with MDD survey was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. and Lundbeck between April 21 and May 1, 2015, among 300 U.S. adults ages 18+ who self-report that they have been diagnosed with MDD by a healthcare professional (“adults with MDD”); 150 U.S. psychiatrists who treat adults ages 18+ with MDD (“psychiatrists”); and 152 U.S. primary care providers who treat adults ages 18+ with MDD (“primary care providers”). The survey did not attempt to interview the patients of the psychiatrists and primary care providers, and based on the anonymous nature of the survey, would not directly know that information. Any incidence of physician/patient-related respondents is purely coincidental.
	The objective of the Living with MDD survey was to understand patient and physician perceptions and opinions of living with MDD and treating patients with the disease. Specifically, the survey sought to collect data on feelings regarding various aspects of living with and managing MDD, including medication.
7.	Reported results are excerpted from the full data collected. To access the full data set, please contact Kimberly Whitefield at Otsuka ([e-mail]) or Nick Przbyciel ([e-mail]) at Lundbeck. Results reported were selected based on best applicability to survey objectives.
8.	National Institute of Mental Health, What is depression? Available at: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression/index.shtml
9.	Many survey questions allowed for multiple responses rather than a single choice. Therefore, the total of all choices does not equal 100%.