View clinical trials related to Depression.
Filter by:For adolescents and young people particularly, there is need for better and more readily available treatments for depression and low mood. Comparatively less work has been done to characterize and treat depression specifically in young people. Previous literature indicates that often the unaddressed or under-addressed mental health difficulties in youth perseverate into adulthood and contribute to a host of individual and communal difficulties throughout the lifespan. Specifically, if depression goes unaddressed in young adulthood, the likelihood of a chronic course and multiple relapses or recurrences is much higher. In the present research, we seek to investigate the potential efficacy of a novel intervention for young people with low mood. Depression disrupts social functioning, and social connectedness is especially important during adolescence for healthy development. Within a growing body of literature, social dance has been linked to social and mental health benefits along the dimensions of those disrupted in depression. We hypothesize that social dance might preferentially and efficiently target the goals of addressing loneliness, closeness, and enjoyment in young people compared to other approaches to the treatment of low mood and depression in a way that could lead to mood improvements. Specifically, we are interested in the impact of a social movement-based activity, salsa dancing, on young peoples' mood and social and emotional processing. Social and emotional processing (SEP) tasks, such as emotional facial recognition and memory for emotional words, have been demonstrated to correspond with early changes that can be predictive of mood changes and treatment efficacy downstream. Including SEP tasks in this research will help to elucidate the potential mechanisms underlying mood improvements, should social dance correspond to improved mood in participants. The present research seeks to: 1. Aim 1: Investigate the effect of a social dance intervention on low mood. This will be assessed by administering psychological questionnaires to participants before, during, and after the study course of social dance sessions. In particular, we hypothesize that participants will experience reductions in low mood (assessed via the PHQ-9) following the social movement intervention as compared to a waitlist control. 2. Aim 2: Characterize any early social and emotional processing changes that correspond to social dance versus a waitlist control. This will be assessed via social and emotional processing task performance before, during, and following the social movement sessions. We anticipate that improvements in social and emotional functioning as demonstrated via one or several of these tasks will assist in elucidating the possible mechanisms responsible for mood improvement from social movement. 3. Aim 3: Characterize any social interaction difference from pre to post intervention that correspond to the social dance versus waitlist condition. This will be assessed via a version of the trust game before and following the social movement sessions and waitlist control. We anticipate seeing more disrupted trust behavior prior to the intervention or control conditions and less disrupted trust behavior following salsa dancing classes, but not the waitlist control. In this randomized controlled trial, participants in the experimental group will complete six to eight sessions of social movement (salsa dance) classes within an eight-week period, and complete psychological questionnaires and tasks before, during, and after these eight weeks. Their scores will be compared with those of a control group that will participate in an active waitlist condition. If the present study suggests that social movement benefits young people with low mood, it could form the basis for investigating a potential new cost-effective, non-invasive, accessible intervention that could be made available to young people.
Not only being the mainstay of treatment for schizophrenia spectrum psychotic disorders, antipsychotics, especially the second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) have also been recommended as augmenting agents for treating depression. Dopaminergic agents, including both dopamine D2/D3 antagonists and dopamine partial D2 agonists, have been effective for treating psychosis and schizophrenia. Amongst all SGAs, those with partial D2 agonistic property are generally acknowledged to have better side-effect profiles with lower incidence of extrapyramidal side-effects, prolactin increase, weight gain, QTc prolongation, and metabolic syndrome, as well as more efficacious in alleviating depressive symptoms. Up-to-date, three SGAs, namely aripiprazole, brexpiprazole and cariprazine, are known to possess such partial D2 agonism. ReSD-HK study is part of the ReSD Asian Study aiming to carefully evaluate a cohort of patients prescribed with brexpiprazole on its efficacy and tolerability as treatment for schizophrenia and/or depression in a real-life clinical setting.
It is known that 1 in 5 women experience psychological difficulties during their pregnancy or in the first year after giving birth. Unfortunately, in 75% of cases, these problems go undetected, resulting in the woman, her partner and the baby not receiving the proper care. For this reason, the Flemish government wants to screen all women in the perinatal period for their mental well-being using short questionnaires with the aim of referring them to appropriate care. Before they can recommend this screening to all women in the perinatal period, it is necessary to investigate the effectiveness of these short questionnaires, as well as the proposed stepped screening protocol. The investigators want to use this study to determine whether the questionnaires and the stepped screening protocol are sufficiently sensitive to detect mental health problems during this period. This means that they want to check whether the (future) moms who screen positive actually have problems and whether the (future) moms who screen negative effectively do not have psychological problems. In case of positive findings, teh investigators want to recommend that screening for psychological well-being should best be part of standard care in the future. Participants will be asked to answer some questions regarding depressive and anxiety symptoms using existing screening instruments (Whooley, GAD-2, EPDS and GAD-7). On the basis of an online application one can be assigned to the group that will be invited for a telephone interview by a study employee of the UZ Gent (psychologist or psyciatrist) to conduct a semi-structured interview within 2 weeks after completing these questions. The interviewer will ask questions about current psychological well-being and, where applicable, psychological problems in the past. The interviewer will not be aware of the responses to the questionnaires, so as not to be prejudiced. Being contacted for an interview does not necessarily mean that those women scored higher on the questionnaires, as they may also belong to the control group. In addition, a number of demographic data are requested (such as age, marital status, level of education, occupational category, how many pregnancies, number of other (living) children, (expected) delivery date, current forms of treatment (medications, psychotherapeutic interventions) and psychiatric history).
Glaucoma is a chronic disease that causes loss of vision and potentially blindness as a result of optic nerve damage, often due to increased intraocular pressure. Glaucoma is currently the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide.1 In 2020, 4.1 million and 3.6 million adults over the age of 50 suffered from mild to severe glaucoma-induced visual impairment and blindness, respectively.1 However, these figures are likely underestimated since glaucoma can remain asymptomatic until later stages in disease progression.2 The relaxation response evoked by mind-body interventions, such as breathing exercises and meditation, is known to reduce stress and improve quality of life (QOL). In a recent study, mindfulness-based meditation was found to reduce intraocular pressure and improve QOL in patients with glaucoma.3 A feasibility study will be conducted using a mixed-method design to assess the feasibility of the online delivery of an intervention titled Breathing Exercises followed by Meditation for potentially enhancing the QOL and mental health of glaucoma patients. Upon recruitment, participants will undergo blocked randomization to either the intervention arm or usual care arm, stratified by sex. Participants in each arm will complete online questionnaires at baseline and after 12 weeks to collect data on health-related quality of life (HRQOL), depression symptoms, anxiety, and sleep quality using REDCap, an electronic data capturing system provided by Lawson Health Research Institute (LHRI). Our study can help to assess the feasibility of conducting a pilot study on breathing exercises followed by meditation to assess its effects in a sample of patients with glaucoma.
This randomized control trial aims to investigate whether a novel intervention, the "Building Regulation in Dual Generations (BRIDGE)" program, improves mental wellness and parenting practices among mothers of 3 to 5-year-old children who have elevated symptoms of depression. The main two questions this study aims to answer are: - Does participation in the BRIDGE program reduce maternal depression symptoms? - Does participation in the BRIDGE program improve children's mental health? Researchers will compare the BRIDGE intervention to an established mental health intervention (i.e., Dialectical Behaviour Therapy skills group) and to a services-as-usual control group to see if participation in BRIDGE leads to greater improvements than either the general mental health treatment or community services as usual. Participants will: - Complete a set of questionnaires pre- and post-intervention, and at 6-month follow-up. - Complete a virtual assessment with their child at pre- and post-intervention. - Be randomized to BRIDGE, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy(DBT) skills group, or a services-as-usual control group. - Participate in the 16-week BRIDGE or DBT Skills only group, if randomized to either of these groups. If they are randomized to services-as-usual they will receive a list of community resources they can access. - Complete weekly symptom monitoring via questionnaires, if randomized to BRIDGE or DBT Skills - Wear a Fitbit device during pre- and post-intervention, as well as throughout the 16-week intervention period.
The purpose of this clinical trial is to explore the efficacy of drug therapy under the guidance of pharmacogenomics test in the treatment of patients with depression. The main questions to be answered in this study are: 1. Whether the drug treatment regimen under the guidance of pharmacogenomics test is beneficial to the rehabilitation of patients with depression. 2. Pharmacogenomics tests whether it can reduce adverse drug reactions during treatment, and be evaluated by the scale before and after treatment. The researchers will compare the pharmacogenomics test group with the healthy control group to see the effect of drug therapy under the guidance of pharmacogenomics test on the efficacy of patients with depression.
Bright Light Therapy (BLT) is a proven treatment for depression in seasonal and non-seasonal depressive disorders, as well as bipolar disorder. To make BLT more effective and practical in clinical settings and tailor it to individual needs, it is necessary to optimize the treatment approach, understand how the treatment works, and identify patient characteristics that predict response. This clinical trial has three main goals: - Optimize the administration of BLT for patients with depressive episodes. - Gain a deeper understanding of the treatment mechanisms. - Determine which patients benefit the most from the treatment. The specific objectives are as follows: - Investigate whether additional treatments and interventions related to lifestyle and the biological clock can enhance the effects of BLT. - Examine how BLT influences the body's internal clock and sleep quality, and how these factors contribute to the outcomes. - Identify patient characteristics and behaviours that can predict treatment outcomes. - Develop a brain model to better understand the impact of BLT on the brain. In this study, patients will receive BLT with a light intensity of 10,000 lux for 30 minutes each morning over 5 consecutive days. The treatment duration will range from one to three weeks, depending on the improvement of depressive symptoms. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of three groups: - Home - Patients will receive BLT at home, following the standard guidelines for light therapy in the Netherlands. - LightCafé, fixed time: Patients will receive BLT in a café-like setting called the LightCafé, where the focus is not only on symptom improvement but also lifestyle enhancements and fostering social connections. The treatment time will be the same every day. - LightCafé, varying time: Patients will also receive BLT at the LightCafé, with treatment timing varying each day. Additionally, this group will wear glasses in the evening that filter blue light. The study includes a baseline phase of up to two weeks, a treatment phase of up to three weeks, and a three-month follow-up phase. Patients will wear a motion watch to assess sleep-wake behaviour and physical activity during the day. Additionally, they will wear a broach that measures their personal light exposure throughout the day. Eight one-minute questionnaires per day will be sent to the participants' smartphones to assess vitality, sleep, and mood during the treatment. Predictors of treatment response, such as clinical characteristics, sleep measures, circadian parameters, and light-related behaviours, will be evaluated at baseline. In a small group of patients, salivary melatonin curves will be assessed before and after treatment. MRI scans will provide insights into functional and structural brain changes following light therapy treatment.
Primary Objective: Evaluate the clinical effectiveness of the MamaLift Plus app compared to control (digital sham plus treatment as usual) for the management of PPD in the observed population for a period of 9 calendar weeks. It is hypothesized that women who use the MamaLift Plus APP will experience less severe symptoms of depression in post-partum period than comparable women who do not and receive their usual care from health providers.
The investigators aim to explore the efficacy and safety of rTMS therapies with different intervals between sessions for treating patients with moderate to severe depression.
Breathing, blood pressure, and blood flow into the brain are controlled - in part - by small areas in the brainstem; the central chemoreceptors. The mechanisms involved in the transmission of signals through the brainstem and also in controlling brain blood flow past the brainstem both use a molecule called serotonin. Citalopram is a "selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor" (or SSRI) which means it allows serotonin to be released in the brain but stops it from being reabsorbed. SSRIs are often used as antidepressants. This study aims to investigate the influence of an SSRI on the control of brain blood flow.