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Neurobiological Changes When Treating Depression With Electroconvulsive Therapy - a Longitudinal Observational Study

Conditions
Depression
Registration Number
NCT01869868
Lead Sponsor
Linkoeping University
Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to determine functional and structural changes in brain following treatment of severe depression with electroconvulsive therapy with correlation to clinical outcome. Our hypothesis is that there are state-dependent changes in functional connectivity within specific neurocircuits systems, as well as structural plasticity changes in hippocampus, when recovering from depression.

Detailed Description

The study is a prospective, within-subject, observational follow-up study in individuals with depression who receive electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)at a psychiatric clinic. We will use a consecutive sampling method and patient referred for ECT by their psychiatrist will be screened for inclusion and asked for participation. Both in - and outpatients can be included. At three occasions (before treatment, after four week and after three months) patients will be assessed with clinical ratings, cognitive tests, functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging and biomarkers for cell proliferation.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
UNKNOWN
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
50
Inclusion Criteria
  • major depressive disorder
  • depressive episode in bipolar disorder
  • age 18 - 65 years
Exclusion Criteria
  • alcohol- and/or drug dependence or abuse in the past 3 months
  • severe/life-threatening medical disease
  • pregnancy
  • type I diabetes
  • neurodegenerative disorder
  • inability to give written informed consent to participation in the study
  • contradiction to MRI scanning.

Study & Design

Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Study Design
Not specified
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Measures of hippocampal volume assessed by structural MRIThree months
fMRI BOLD resting state functional connectivity3 month
fMRI BOLD responses during execution of emotional and reward processing tasks3 months
Biomarkers of cell proliferation3 months
Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Relation between neurobiological changes and clinical and cognitive outcomeThree months

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Linkoeping University, Linkoeping University Hospital

πŸ‡ΈπŸ‡ͺ

Linkoeping, Ostergotland, Sweden

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