Trying to predict who will respond to ECT as treatment for depression
March 5, 2018
Depression doesn’t look the same among all individuals that live with depression. Some people have a type of depression that is resistant to medication and more difficult to treat. Researchers at UCLA have shown that individuals with higher levels of inflammation and treatment resistant depression may benefit from electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). The findings show that higher levels of inflammatory markers in the blood before the first ECT session correlated with a decrease in reported depression symptoms after ECT. If the findings are replicated in a larger study, measuring inflammation could help doctors decide which patients with depression would be best suited for ECT.
Read more at UCLA Newsroom
Note: This study catalyzed the Depression Grand Challenge demonstration project on biomarkers of fast acting treatment for depression. See the Human Studies Demonstration Project Guide to learn more about the biomarkers of fast acting treatment study.