fMRI Study of Treatment Changes in Major Depression

• Status: Completed
• Trial end date: 2014-01-01
• Target enrollment: 0
• Participant gender: All

Summary

The overall purposes of this research are to determine if Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has the same healing effect on the brain for people with depression as traditional antidepressants do, and in comparison to healthy controls with no history of depression, to find out more about the causes of depression including differences in the extent of problems caused by depression. We hypothesize that CBT will have the same healing effect on the brain as antidepressants; that differences in brain activations created by the various tasks and genetic differences will help us understand differences in the type and severity of symptoms among the depressed subjects.

• Phase: N/A
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers?: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Details

• Lead Sponsor: Washington University School of Medicine
• Collaborator: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
• Treatments: Sertraline

Criteria

DEPRESSED GROUP:

Inclusion criteria:

1. Age 18-50

2. DSM-IV criteria for major depressive disorder (MDD)

3. Minimum Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD) score > 18

4. Right handed

5. Capacity to give informed consent and follow study procedures

6. English speaking

Exclusion criteria:

1. Cannot give informed consent

2. Significant handicaps (e.g. visual or hearing loss, mental retardation) that would interfere with testing procedures

3. Does not speak English

4. Known primary neurological disorders

5. Any other factor that in the investigators judgment may affect patient safety or compliance (e.g. distance greater than 100 miles from clinic)

6. MRI contraindications e.g. foreign metallic implants, pacemaker

7. Known allergy or hypersensitivity to sertraline

8. Active suicidality

9. Severe or unstable medical illness or conditions or drugs that may cause depression

10. Any of the following diagnosed by DSM-IV: alcohol or substance abuse disorder, schizophrenia or other psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, psychotic features of depression, current obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) or panic disorder. In general, subjects with a history of other Axis I disorders prior to their depression will be excluded.

11. Current episode has failed to respond to adequate trials of two prior antidepressants for at least 6 weeks at therapeutic doses.

12. Treatment with sertraline for at least one month in past 3 months.

13. Current use of psychotropic prescription or nonprescription drugs or herbals (e.g. hypericum) except for limited use of certain hypnotics.

14. Current psychotherapy

15. Treatment with psychotropic drugs or drugs that affect the CNS such as beta-blockers or mood stabilizers.

CONTROL GROUP:

Inclusion criteria:

1. Age 18-50

2. No history of MDD

3. HAMD score < 7

4. Right handed

5. Capacity to give informed consent and follow study procedures

6. English speaking

Exclusion criteria:

1. Cannot give informed consent

2. Significant handicaps (e.g. visual or hearing loss, mental retardation) that would interfere with testing procedures

3. Does not speak English

4. Known primary neurological disorders

5. Any other factor that in the investigators judgment may affect patient safety or compliance (e.g. distance greater than 100 miles from clinic)

6. MRI contraindications e.g. foreign metallic implants, pacemaker

7. Severe or unstable medical illness or conditions or drugs that may cause depression

8. Any of the following diagnosed by DSM-IV: alcohol or substance abuse disorder, schizophrenia or other psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, major depression, OCD or panic disorder.

9. Current use of psychotropic prescription or nonprescription drugs or herbals (e.g. hypericum) except for limited use of certain hypnotics.

10. Treatment with psychotropic drugs or drugs that affect the CNS such as beta-blockers or mood stabilizers.