Although the results do not support the routine prescription of hypnotic medication for mitigating suicidal ideation in all depressed outpatients with insomnia, they suggest that coprescription of a hypnotic during initiation of an antidepressant may be beneficial in suicidal outpatients, reports MD Mag.

A team of investigators led by W. Vaughn McCall, MD, MS Case Distinguished University Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Health Behavior at Augusta University, found in an 8-week, 3-site, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel-group, randomized controlled trial that zolpidem (zolpidem-CR) hypnotic therapy in conjunction with an open-label selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor could be beneficial for suicidal outpatients with severe insomnia.