Active clinical trials for "Depressive Disorder"

The purpose of the study is to examine the feasibility and potential efficacy of low-intensity focused ultrasound as a method of modulating amygdala function to promote improvements in symptoms of an affective disorder. Ultrasound is frequently and safely utilized for diagnostic purposes. In this study, the investigators will utilize magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and neuronavigation to target the left amygdala and apply ultrasound. This will be conducted once a day, 5 days a week, for 3 weeks. This will be an open-label, single-arm trial.

Non-invasive transcranial brain stimulation (NTBS) techniques are well established in experimental neuroscience and have been increasingly used in the treatment of mental illnesses, especially depressive disorders, in the last years. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) of prefrontal cortex regions has been reported to exert antidepressant effects. Treatment with tDCS for MDD requires sessions several times a week, which is very time-consuming and stressful for patients, as they have to come to the clinic almost every day. At the same time, the availability of non-drug therapies for MDD is limited, especially in more rural areas. The home-treatment approach with tDCS for MDD could address this problem and is of increasing interest in times of the Covid-19 pandemic, when frequent clinic visits should be avoided. There are some studies on the home-treatment approach with tDCS for different, mainly neurological disorders such as parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and chronic pain. For the treatment of MDD with tDCS in the home treatment setting, only one pilot study has been published so far, which shows good feasibility and good antidepressant effects. However, this study does not include a placebo condition. The study will be conducted in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group design with 16 patients per group. Patients with MDD do a 6-weeks self-administered treatment with prefrontal tDCS (anode: F3, cathode: F4, 5 sessions/week, 30min/day, 2mA intensity) or sham tDCS (parameters correspondent active tDCS, ramp in and ramp out periods only without intermittent stimulation) as adjunctive treatment to a serotonergic medication or alone. For the continuous monitoring of the technical parameters and thus for quality control and for blinding, the same technical achievements as in the DepressionDC trial are used. As a new feature, a cap is used for easier handling in the home-treatment setting, in which electrodes are already integrated at the F3 and F4 points. This study aims to investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of 6 weeks of daily home treatment with tDCS for MDD. According to the DepressionDC trial, the primary outcome parameters are the decrease in the MADRS after 6 weeks and at the end of the follow-up phase, as well as the feasibility based on the dropout rates and the outcome in the comfort rating questionnaire. Additional baseline examinations with cMRI and e-field modelling will investigate the possible influence of the individual e-field on the outcome.

Post-stroke depression (PSD) is a common complication of stroke that leads to dysfunction and reduces the quality of life. PSD exacerbates cognitive dysfunction, delays the recovery process, and increases the disability, mortality and recurrence rates of stroke. Therefore, early clinical treatments for PSD are important to improve the prognosis and restore the social functions of stroke patients. Integrated rehabilitation has significant advantages in the treatment of PSD. First of all, there is a wide range of rehabilitation methods, such as acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicine, and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation, which have been proved to be effective for PSD. However, as the application of integrated rehabilitation becomes more and more widespread, its shortcomings are gradually emerging. For example, most of the treatment protocols used in clinical studies are based on personal experience of the investigators, a unified protocol has not yet been formed; treatment methods are still insufficient in standardization and reproducibility. More studies focus solely on the improvement of a certain symptom by a certain rehabilitation therapy, but ignore the important theoretical basis of the "holistic concept", thus showing the uneven clinical efficacy. For the above existing problems, it is necessary to conduct original and innovative research.

This study will investigate the anti-anhedonic efficacy of a novel neurostimulation strategy termed accelerated intermittent theta burst stimulation (aiTBS) in participants with treatment resistant depression (TRD).

A 12-week, randomized controlled trial (RCT) will be conducted to explore the effect of add-on sulforaphane (SFN) to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for major depressive disorder (MDD). This study also aims to explore the value of niacin skin flush response test in MDD. One hundred adults diagnosed with MDD will be recruited. Then all the patients will be randomly assigned to SSRI only group and SSRI plus SFN group. Clinical symptoms and side-effects will be evaluated using the 17-Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (17-HDRS), the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA), Treatment Emergent Symptom Scale (TESS), and Asberg's Rating Scale for Side Effects (SERS) at baseline and weeks 2, 4, 8 and 12 after treatment. Fifty healthy subjects will be recruited as control group. For all subjects, testing of niacin skin flush response and serum levels of nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2(Nrf-2), p-Nrf2, Heme Oxygenase-1 (HO-1), malondialdehyde (MDA) and erythrocyte glutathion peroxidase (GPX) will be performed at baseline and endpoint. The primary outcome is the reduction rate in 17-HDRS total score from baseline to the end of the study. The secondary outcomes include changes in niacin skin flush response test and levels of serum markers. All the data will be analyzed by SPSS software.

Vildagliptin, an antidiabetic drug that inhibits the dipeptidyl peptidase- 4 (DPP-4), increases glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and regulates blood glucose levels, favoring weight loss and lowering cardiovascular risk. A retrospective longitudinal study by Rizzo et al. showed that DPP-4 inhibitors administration could have protective effects against cognitive decline in diabetic elderly. Is has been observed that GLP-1 affects brain metabolism, increases neuritic growth, and protects neuronal cells from oxidative stress and death.

This partnership between Talkspace and the UW ALACRITY Center will determine how effective unlimited text-based psychotherapy for depression is when compared to once-a-week psychotherapy. This study will also determine what the best treatment options are for people who are not responding well to either unlimited texting or weekly psychotherapy. The results of this study will be a new product version of message-based care that can tailor psychotherapy intensity based on the needs of future consumers with depression.

Depression is more common after a spinal cord injury (SCI) than in the general population. Unfortunately, it is unknown how depression is typically treated in individuals with SCI or if commonly used treatment methods are effective. This study will investigate the safety and impact of a novel method for treating depression called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). rTMS is a type of non-invasive brain stimulation. Fourteen individuals with a cervical or thoracic level SCI and depression will complete an approved treatment plan using rTMS. Participants will be treated using rTMS five days a week for four weeks. After four weeks of treatment, the study team will review the safety of rTMS and assess changes in depressive symptoms. If the results are positive, larger studies can be designed to develop better treatment options for individuals with SCI and depression.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a brief, efficient, and effective treatment for individuals with depressive/anxiety disorders. However, CBT is largely underutilized within the Department of Veterans Affairs due to the cost and burden of trainings necessary to deliver all of the related disorder-specific treatments (DSTs). Transdiagnostic Behavior Therapy (TBT), in contrast, is specifically designed to address numerous distinct disorders within a single protocol in Veterans with depressive/anxiety disorders, including posttraumatic stress disorder. The proposed research seeks to evaluate the efficacy of TBT by assessing psychiatric symptomatology and related impairment outcomes in Veterans with depressive/anxiety disorders via a randomized controlled trial of TBT and existing DSTs in Veterans with major depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, and panic disorder. Assessments will be completed at pre-, mid-, and post-treatment, and at 6-month follow-up. Process variables also will be investigated.

Children with emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) experience disproportionate social, family and academic impairment and have between two to five times increased likelihood of developing an anxiety disorder, mood disorder or other severe mental illness in adolescence and adulthood. There is a close association between parental depression and the emergence and maintenance of childhood EBD that is likely bidirectional. Parents of children with EBD experience disproportionate stress, increasing their risk for depression; yet chronic and untreated parental depression is associated with the emergence of child EBD in the first place. Therefore, designing targeted and effective assessment and treatment for parents of children with EBD that take into account parents' depression is necessary. Of pressing concern, first-line Behavioral Parent Training (BPT) treatments for parents of children with EBD are not tailored to parent's mental health needs, which may be why upwards of 40 percent of parents and children treated in these programs fail to sufficiently benefit. Existing research highlights emotional and cognitive factors that may differentiate depressed parents from non-depressed parents that may be treatment targets to improve outcomes for depressed parents and children. The main aim of the proposed project is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a novel targeted treatment for depressed parents of children with EBD, along with adherence to study protocol. The investigators will use the results of the pilot study to make key modifications to study procedures and the treatment itself to increase the success of a future randomized controlled trial (RCT) to test treatment efficacy. The investigators hypothesize that: Recruitment will be feasible. The intervention will be acceptable, and there will be a high rate of adherence to study protocol.