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The Neurobiology of Depressive Illness

NCT00168493 · Status: UNKNOWN · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 40

Last updated 2008-05-20

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

We aim to determine why patients with depression are at an elevated risk for the development of coronary heart disease, and resolve whether the severity of a patient's depression has a counterpart in demonstrable abnormalities in brain chemistry. Studies will be completed in 28 patients with depression; both males and females. Patients will be studied both untreated and during administration of a selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant. They will be either newly diagnosed with depression, untreated patients suffering a recent relapse, or patients seeking to switch from a non-SSRI antidepressant due to non-response. The turnover of chemical messengers in the brain will be estimated by high internal jugular venous blood sampling and DNA will be isolated and examined from blood cells. Immune function will also be assessed. Whole body and cardiac sympathetic nervous activity will be determined, as well as microneurographic recording of muscle sympathetic nervous activity.

It is hypothesised that patients with depression and no existing demonstrable cardiac disease demonstrate:

Alterations in brain monoaminergic neurotransmitter turnover, resulting in sympathetic nervous activation and dysregulation of the baroreflex control to both the heart (vagal) and muscle vasoconstrictor sympathetic nerves; and Exhibit enhanced platelet reactivity predisposing them to thrombogenesis and myocardial ischaemia.

Therapeutic intervention with an SSRI will modify cardiac sympathetic function, baroreflex sensitivity or platelet reactivity in a fashion likely to reduce cardiac risk.

Conditions

Interventions

DRUG

antidepressants primarily selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors

normal clinical dosages used according to clinical response as determined by a psychiatrist

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia

    collaborator OTHER

  • Baker Heart Research Institute

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Murray A Esler, MBBS Phd · Baker Heart Research Insitute

Study Design

Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
75 Years
Sex
FEMALE
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2000-06-30
Primary Completion
2008-12-31
Completion
2009-12-31

Countries

  • Australia

Study Locations

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Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT00168493 on ClinicalTrials.gov