Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 21, 2026
04:29
Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression
Published on: January 7, 2019
[Combination treatment of depression]
Gudrun Høiseth1, Dag Kristen Solberg, Helge Refsum
1Senter for psykofarmakologi, Diakonhjemmet Sykehus, Norway. gudrun.hoiseth@diakonsyk.no
Summary
Despite initial antidepressant treatment, over half of patients with severe depression remain depressed. Combination therapy, including augmenting with lithium or thyroid hormone T3, offers potential solutions when other factors are optimized.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry and Pharmacology
- Neuroscience
Context:
- Severe depression is a prevalent mental health condition.
- Antidepressants are superior to placebo but often insufficient for many patients.
- Treatment resistance affects a significant portion of individuals with major depressive disorder.
Purpose:
- To explore combination therapy as a strategy for treatment-resistant depression.
- To review the documented effectiveness of augmenting antidepressants with lithium or thyroid hormone T3.
- To discuss the common use of combining two antidepressant drugs despite less extensive documentation.
Summary:
- While antidepressants outperform placebos, over 50% of patients with severe depression do not achieve remission with initial treatment.
- Augmentation strategies, such as adding lithium or thyroid hormone T3 (triiodothyronine), show documented efficacy, particularly with tricyclic antidepressants.
- Combining two antidepressant medications is a relatively common practice, though less supported by extensive research compared to augmentation.
Impact:
- Highlights the need for alternative treatment strategies beyond monotherapy for severe depression.
- Suggests that combination therapies, including augmentation, warrant wider consideration in clinical practice.
- Emphasizes the ongoing search for effective treatments for treatment-resistant depression.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:23Antidepressant Drugs: MAOIs and Other Agents
Atypical antidepressants, including bupropion (Wellbutrin), mirtazapine (Remeron), nefazodone (Serzone), trazodone (Desyrel), and vilazodone (Viibryd), offer unique mechanisms of action. Bupropion weakly inhibits dopamine and norepinephrine reuptake, aiding depression treatment and smoking cessation, with a low risk of sexual dysfunction. Mirtazapine enhances serotonin and norepinephrine neurotransmission, leading to sedation, increased appetite, and weight gain. As a result, it helps treat...
01:18Depression: Overview
Depression is a prevalent mental illness marked by persistent sadness and lack of interest in previously enjoyable activities. It can take several forms, including major depression, persistent depressive disorder, and bipolar I and II disorders. Symptoms range from emotional changes like chronic worry to physical changes like sleep disturbances and suicidal thoughts. From a neurobiological perspective, depression is believed to be triggered by abnormalities in the brain's prefrontal cortex,...
01:28Drug Therapy
The advent of drug therapy has profoundly shaped modern mental health care, providing targeted treatments for a range of psychological disorders. Psychotherapeutic drugs, classified into antianxiety, antidepressant, and antipsychotic medications, address symptoms across anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and schizophrenia. While these medications have transformed patient outcomes, they require careful management due to their potential side effects and limitations.
Antianxiety Medications
Antianxiety Medications
01:25Antidepressant Drugs: Overview
Antidepressant drugs are a class of medications primarily used for treating various mood disorders, including major depression, anxiety disorders, and other related conditions. These medicines work by modulating the neurotransmitter balance within the brain, alleviating depressive symptoms. Antidepressants can be broadly categorized into several groups according to their mechanism of action and chemical structure: Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), Serotonin-Norepinephrine...
01:28Antidepressant Drugs: Tricyclics, SSRIs, and SNRIs
Tricyclic Antidepressants (TCAs), including Desipramine (Norpramin), Imipramine (Tofranil), Clomipramine (Anafranil), and Amitriptyline (Elavil), inhibit serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake and also block other receptors. They are used for depression, pain conditions, and insomnia. Common adverse effects include anticholinergic effects, sedation, orthostatic hypotension, and weight gain. They have a narrow therapeutic window and so require plasma-level monitoring. Abrupt discontinuation can...
02:50Combination Therapies and Personalized Medicine
Combining two or more treatment methods increases the life span of cancer patients while reducing damage to vital organs or tissue from the overuse of a single treatment. Combination therapy also targets different cancer-inducing pathways, thus reducing the chances of developing resistance to treatment.
The combination of the drug acetazolamide and sulforaphane is a good example of combination therapy to treat cancer. The cells in the interior of a large tumor often die due to the hypoxic and...
The combination of the drug acetazolamide and sulforaphane is a good example of combination therapy to treat cancer. The cells in the interior of a large tumor often die due to the hypoxic and...