Home-based transcranial direct current stimulation for major depressive disorder: 6-month follow-up from randomised sham-controlled trial and open-label treatment phases.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a potential home-based treatment for major depressive disorder (MDD). In our double-blind randomised controlled trial (RCT) (n = 174; UK and USA), a 10-week course of home-based tDCS demonstrated clinical efficacy (clinical response: 58.3 % active treatment arm and 37.

Home-based transcranial direct current stimulation treatment for major depressive disorder: a fully remote phase 2 randomized sham-controlled trial.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been proposed as a new treatment in major depressive disorder (MDD). This is a fully remote, multisite, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized superiority trial of 10-week home-based tDCS in MDD. Participants were 18 years or older, with MDD in current depressive episode of at least moderate severity as measured using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (mean = 19.

Investigating the association between metabolic syndrome conditions and perinatal mental illness: a national administrative claims study.

Background: Although the association between mental disorder and metabolic syndrome as a bidirectional relationship has been demonstrated, there is little knowledge of the cumulative and individual effect of these conditions on peripartum mental health. This study aims to investigate the association between metabolic syndrome conditions (MetS-C) and maternal mental illness in the perinatal period, while exploring time to incident mental disorder diagnosis in postpartum women.

Methods: This observational study identified perinatal women continuously enrolled 1 year prior to and 1 year post-delivery using Optum's de-identified Clinformatics® Data Mart Database (CDM) from 2014 to 2019 with MetS-C i.

Effect of Bicycle Ergometer Training and Nordic Walking Training on Improving Functional Exercise Capacity in Asthma Patients.

Introduction Asthma is a chronic respiratory condition characterized by inflammation of the airway leading to breathlessness. Exercise training has been recognized as a valuable component in the management of asthma, enhancing lung function and overall well-being. Bicycle ergometer training and Nordic walking are two distinct forms of exercise that have been shown to improve cardiovascular fitness and respiratory function.

Enhancing Skeletal Muscle Rehabilitation: The Effects of Diclofenac Phonophoresis and Shock Wave Therapy on Serum Creatine Kinase in Athletes With Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness.

Background Delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a common condition in athletes characterized by muscle pain and stiffness after intense or unfamiliar exercise. It significantly impairs an athlete's performance by reducing muscle strength, flexibility, and overall physical capacity, often leading to suboptimal training or competition outcomes. Managing and mitigating DOMS is crucial for athletes to maintain peak performance and prevent potential injuries.

A leaky umbrella has little value: evidence clearly indicates the serotonin system is implicated in depression.

A recent “umbrella” review examined various biomarkers relating to the serotonin system, and concluded there was no consistent evidence implicating serotonin in the pathophysiology of depression. We present reasons for why this conclusion is overstated, including methodological weaknesses in the review process, selective reporting of data, over-simplification, and errors in the interpretation of neuropsychopharmacological findings. We use the examples of tryptophan depletion and serotonergic molecular imaging, the two research areas most relevant to the investigation of serotonin, to illustrate this.

Digital health technologies for peripartum depression management among low-socioeconomic populations: perspectives from patients, providers, and social media channels.

Background: Peripartum Depression (PPD) affects approximately 10-15% of perinatal women in the U.S., with those of low socioeconomic status (low-SES) more likely to develop symptoms.

Noninvasive Brain Stimulation Techniques for Treatment-Resistant Depression: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation is a safe, effective, and well-tolerated intervention for depression; it is currently approved for treatment-resistant depression. This article summarizes the mechanism of action, evidence of clinical efficacy, and the clinical aspects of this intervention, including patient evaluation, stimulation parameters selection, and safety considerations. Transcranial direct current stimulation is another neuromodulation treatment for depression; although promising, the technique is not currently approved for clinical use in the United States.

Effects of an experimentally induced inflammatory stimulus on motivational behavior in remitted depressed patients.

Background: Acute inflammation is associated with sickness behavior characterized by reduced motivation for pleasurable activities in humans. The current study investigated the effect of an experimentally induced inflammatory stimulus on motivational reward in people who remitted from depression.

Methods: This randomized, double-blind crossover study involved 12 participants, 5 with remitted major depressive disorder (rMDD) and 7 healthy controls (HC), who received an injection of typhoid vaccine and placebo (or vice-versa) intramuscularly at least one week apart.

Processing speed - A potential candidate cognitive endophenotype for bipolar disorder.

Background: Bipolar disorder (BD) is a chronic multifactorial disorder that presents with cognitive impairment as one of its main features, in patients as well as in their first-degree relatives. However, the profile of cognitive dysfunction in BD patients and their relatives is not yet well defined. Various neurocognitive deficits have been proposed as endophenotypes for BD.

MicroRNA-mRNA networks are dysregulated in opioid use disorder postmortem brain: Further evidence for opioid-induced neurovascular alterations.

Introduction: To understand mechanisms and identify potential targets for intervention in the current crisis of opioid use disorder (OUD), postmortem brains represent an under-utilized resource. To refine previously reported gene signatures of neurobiological alterations in OUD from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (Brodmann Area 9, BA9), we explored the role of microRNAs (miRNA) as powerful epigenetic regulators of gene function.

Methods: Building on the growing appreciation that miRNAs can cross the blood-brain barrier, we carried out miRNA profiling in same-subject postmortem samples from BA9 and blood tissues.

Feasibility of a meditation intervention for stroke survivors and informal caregivers: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Depressive symptoms are a significant psychological complication of stroke, impacting both survivors and informal caregivers of survivors. Randomized controlled trials are needed to determine optimal non-pharmacological strategies to prevent or ameliorate depressive symptoms in stroke survivors and their informal caregivers.

Methods: A prospective, randomized, parallel-group, single-center, feasibility study.

Temporal multi-step predictive modeling of remission in major depressive disorder using early stage treatment data; STAR*D based machine learning approach.

Background: Artificial intelligence is currently being used to facilitate early disease detection, better understand disease progression, optimize medication/treatment dosages, and uncover promising novel treatments and potential outcomes.

Methods: Utilizing the Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D) dataset, we built a machine learning model to predict depression remission rates using same clinical data as features for each of the first three antidepressant treatment steps in STAR*D. We only used early treatment data (baseline and first follow up) in each STAR*D step to temporally analyze predictive features of remission at the end of the step.

Predicting Antidepressant Treatment Response Using Functional Brain Controllability Analysis.

For decades, predicting response to the antidepressant medication has been a critical unmet need in depression treatment in clinic, and a technical challenge in depression research. In this study, a recently developed functional brain network controllability (fBNC) analysis approach was employed to identify the antidepressant treatment responders and nonresponders from depression patients at the pretreatment period. The fBNC, which captures the ability of brain regions to guide the brain's behavior from an initial state to a desired state with suitable choice of inputs, may provide valuable features for antidepressant response prediction.

Within subject cross-tissue analyzes of epigenetic clocks in substance use disorder postmortem brain and blood.

There is a possible accelerated biological aging in patients with substance use disorders (SUD). The evaluation of epigenetic clocks, which are accurate estimators of biological aging based on DNA methylation changes, has been limited to blood tissue in patients with SUD. Consequently, the impact of biological aging in the brain of individuals with SUD remains unknown.

Personalizing repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for precision depression treatment based on functional brain network controllability and optimal control analysis.

Brain neuromodulation effectively treats neurological diseases and psychiatric disorders such as Depression. However, due to patient heterogeneity, neuromodulation treatment outcomes are often highly variable, requiring patient-specific stimulation protocols throughout the recovery stages to optimize treatment outcomes. Therefore, it is critical to personalize neuromodulation protocol to optimize the patient-specific stimulation targets and parameters by accommodating inherent interpatient variability and intersession alteration during treatments.

Blood-based biomarkers of antidepressant response to ketamine and esketamine: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

(R,S)-ketamine (ketamine) and its enantiomer (S)-ketamine (esketamine) can produce rapid and substantial antidepressant effects. However, individual response to ketamine/esketamine is variable, and there are no well-accepted methods to differentiate persons who are more likely to benefit. Numerous potential peripheral biomarkers have been reported, but their current utility is unclear.

Mobile Health Applications for Postpartum Depression Management: A Theory-Informed Analysis of Change-Use-Engagement (CUE) Criteria in the Digital Environment.

Postpartum Depression (PPD) is the most common childbirth complication, with approximately 15% of postpartum women experiencing depression symptoms. Mobile applications have potential to expand delivery of mental health interventions. However, our understanding of how these tools engage women with PPD and facilitate positive behavioral changes is limited.

Effects of escitalopram therapy on functional brain controllability in major depressive disorder.

Antidepressant drugs are the mainstay of treatment for patients with major depressive disorders (MDD). Given the critical role of the underlying neural control mechanism in the physiopathology of depression, this study aims to investigate the effects of escitalopram, a type of antidepressant drug, on the changes of functional brain controllability throughout the escitalopram treatment for MDD. We collected resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from 20 unmedicated major depressive patients at baseline (visit 1, pre-treatment), one week (visit 2, 1-week after the onset of the treatment) and six weeks (visit 3, after the 6-week escitalopram treatment).

Effective connectivity between resting-state networks in depression.

Rationale: Although depression has been widely researched, findings characterizing how brain regions influence each other remains scarce, yet this is critical for research on antidepressant treatments and individual responses to particular treatments.

Objectives: To identify pre-treatment resting state effective connectivity (rsEC) patterns in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and explore their relationship with treatment response.

Methods: Thirty-four drug-free MDD patients had an MRI scan and were subsequently treated for 6 weeks with an SSRI escitalopram 10 mg daily; the response was defined as ≥50% decrease in Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) score.