Disease × agent evidence record

Citalopram for Major Depressive Disorder: evidence, trials and status

Citalopram has both completed registered trials and synthesis-level publications linked to Major Depressive Disorder. That is the strongest profile in this database, but the summaries here do not extract effect sizes, so read the linked reviews for direction and magnitude of benefit.

8 registered trials 2 recruiting 15 publications Evidence tier A · Strong Score 80.0
Research Tracker › Pairs › Major Depressive Disorder › Citalopram
Research map, not treatment advice. This page aggregates registry and literature records. It does not evaluate efficacy, dosing or safety for any individual. Discuss any treatment decision with a qualified clinician.

Summary

Citalopram has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Major Depressive Disorder would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Major Depressive Disorder. ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Citalopram to Major Depressive Disorder: 2 are currently recruiting; 6 have completed. The most advanced is Phase 4 (NCT07478796). The largest enrolment is 976 participants (NCT01369095). Registration activity spans 2002 to 2025. The literature layer holds 15 publications for this pair: 5 Cochrane reviews, 3 meta-analyses, 2 systematic reviews and 5 clinical trial publications. Publication years run from 2021 to 2026. Because at least one synthesis-level source exists (systematic review, meta-analysis or Cochrane review), this pair has been assessed beyond single studies, although the synthesis may concern a different indication.

The RepurpOS disease-intelligence file for Major Depressive Disorder ranks 580 candidate therapeutics from Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and PubMed; only a minority carry direct clinical evidence, and this page covers one of those. Spontaneous remission context recorded for the condition: Relapse in 19-45% within 1 year of antidepressant discontinuation after remission; relapse risk ratio (off-medication vs on) falls from 3.69x at 2 months to 1.34x at 5 years.

Open in Repurposing ExplorerAgent page: CitalopramMajor Depressive Disorder hubMajor Depressive Disorder biomarkers & interventionsChEMBLOpen Targets

Evidence table

Evidence tierA · Strong
Evidence score80.0 (trials 30.0, literature 30.0, tier 15, approved bonus 5.0)
Registered trials8 total: 2 recruiting, 0 active / not yet recruiting, 6 completed, 0 other
Linked publications15 (5 Cochrane reviews, 5 clinical trial publications, 3 meta-analyses, 2 systematic reviews)
Agent typeDrug (Small molecule)
Development stage (any indication)Approved
Mechanism / classNot recorded
Data sourcesOpen Targets, ChEMBL
How the evidence score is calculated
  • Each registered trial scores by status (recruiting / active / enrolling 3, completed 2.5, not yet recruiting 2, unknown 1, terminated / withdrawn / suspended 0.5) plus a phase bonus (phase 3-4 +2, phase 2 +1, phase 1 +0.5). The trial component is capped at 30.
  • Each literature item scores by design (Cochrane review 5, meta-analysis 4, systematic review 3, RCT 3, clinical trial publication 2, curated reference 1.5, other PubMed record 1). The literature component is capped at 30.
  • The existing evidence tier adds 15 (A / Strong), 10 (B / Moderate), 5 (C / Preliminary) or 0 (D / Anecdotal).
  • Agents approved for any indication (max clinical phase 4) add 5, because an approved agent has an established safety profile that lowers the barrier to repurposing trials.
  • The score ranks what has been studied, not what works. It does not read effect sizes or directions of effect.

Registered clinical trials

NCT IDTitleStatusPhaseEnrolment
NCT00166114Depression, Epinephrine, and Platelet Function
2002
completedPhase 440
NCT00464711Brain GABA Levels and Treatment Response in Major Depressive Disorder
2006
completedPhase 440
NCT01198795Safety Study of Escitalopram in Children 7 to 11 Years of Age With Major Depressive Disorder
2010
completedPhase 4162
NCT07478796TDM-Guided Treatment With SSRIs in Hospitalized Adults and Children
2025
recruitingPhase 4180
NCT01312922Pipamperone/Citalopram (PNB01) Versus Citalopram (CIT) and Versus Pipamperone (PIP) in Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)
2011
completedPhase 3555
NCT01034995A Trial Evaluating the Efficacy and Tolerability of SSR125543 in Outpatients With Major Depressive Disorder
2010
completedPhase 2580
NCT01369095Efficacy and Safety of Fixed Doses of BMS 820836 in the Treatment of Patients With Treatment Resistant Major Depression
2011
completedPhase 2976
NCT05002309Treatment Interrupts Depression Early
2021
recruitingPhase 2100

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Published literature

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Mechanism and notes

No mechanism of action is recorded for this pair in the source databases.

OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.

Frequently asked questions

Is Citalopram approved for Major Depressive Disorder?

Citalopram has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Major Depressive Disorder would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Major Depressive Disorder. Approval status for the specific indication should always be confirmed with the relevant regulator and prescribing information.

Is Citalopram in clinical trials for Major Depressive Disorder?

ClinicalTrials.gov lists 8 registered trials linking Citalopram to Major Depressive Disorder: 2 are currently recruiting; 6 have completed. The most advanced is Phase 4 (NCT07478796). The largest enrolment is 976 participants (NCT01369095). Registration activity spans 2002 to 2025.

What does the evidence show for Citalopram in Major Depressive Disorder?

Citalopram has both completed registered trials and synthesis-level publications linked to Major Depressive Disorder. That is the strongest profile in this database, but the summaries here do not extract effect sizes, so read the linked reviews for direction and magnitude of benefit. OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in Open Targets and ChEMBL. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.

Cite this page

Open Source Medicine Foundation. Citalopram for Major Depressive Disorder: evidence, trials and status. OSMF Research Tracker. Updated 2026-07-05. https://research.opensourcemed.info/pairs/major-depressive-disorder/citalopram.html

Data: ClinicalTrials.gov, PubMed, Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and the OSMF therapeutic agent database. Last updated 2026-07-05. Page built 2026-10-07.

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This is a research map, not treatment advice. Evidence tiers and scores summarise what has been studied, not whether a treatment works or is safe for you.