Doctors could for the first time determine which drugs would be most likely to help a patient overcome depression through a blood test, according to the results of a study published in the medical journal Psychoneuroendocrinology.
This blood test measures the level of C-reactive proteins (CRP), and provides an instant tool for doctors who until now relied on questionnaires given to patients to choose a treatment. This test helps to identify which antidepressant treatment is able to improve the symptoms.
Researchers from Southwestern Medical Center in the United States conducted a study with 100 patients who were treated with two types of antidepressants:escitalopramand the bupropion. The first regulates a neurotransmitter essential to nervous balance in the brain, serotonin. The second, bupropion, inhibits the reuptake of serotonin and two other neuromediators: norepinephrine and dopamine.
The study found that patients with CRP levels below 1 milligram per liter were more responsive to escitalopram, with a remission rate of 57%, compared to less than 30% for the other treatment.
For depressives who showed higher CRP levels, the combination of the two treatments proved to be more effective with a remission rate of 51% compared to 33% for taking escitalopram alone.
“These results provide evidence that a biological test can be immediately used in clinical practice,” said Dr. Trivedi, director of the Depression Center, Southwestern Medical Center.
Depression too rarely treated
The depression concerns 121 million people worldwide and 5 to 15% of the French population would be affected by a depressive episode during the year, says the Ministry of Health. If this disease can be diagnosed by a general practitioner, less than a quarter of patients are treated in France. “25% of people therefore do not have access to treatment with antidepressants or brief and structured psychotherapies”, explains the France depression association.
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