Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Antidepressant Drugs: MAOIs and Other Agents01:23

Antidepressant Drugs: MAOIs and Other Agents

1.0K
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...
1.0K
Electroconvulsive Therapy01:30

Electroconvulsive Therapy

1.5K
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), or shock therapy, remains a critical biomedical intervention for severe, treatment-resistant depression. While its origins can be traced back to Hippocrates' observations that malaria-induced convulsions alleviated mental illness, modern ECT has evolved significantly from its earlier, more primitive applications. First introduced in 1938 by Ugo Cerletti and his colleagues, ECT involves inducing controlled seizures using electrical currents. In its early...
1.5K
Antidepressant Drugs: Overview01:25

Antidepressant Drugs: Overview

1.7K
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...
1.7K
Antidepressant Drugs: Tricyclics, SSRIs, and SNRIs01:28

Antidepressant Drugs: Tricyclics, SSRIs, and SNRIs

1.9K
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...
1.9K
Depression: Overview01:18

Depression: Overview

1.1K
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,...
1.1K
Depressive Disorders: MDD and Dysthymia01:27

Depressive Disorders: MDD and Dysthymia

907
Depressive disorders are a group of mental health conditions characterized by pervasive feelings of sadness, diminished pleasure in life, and a significant impact on daily functioning. These conditions are most prevalent in individuals during their 30s and affect women at twice the rate of men. Contrary to popular belief, younger individuals are generally more susceptible to these disorders than older adults. Two key types of depressive disorders include Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and...
907

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Affiliate stigma among family caregivers of people with mental disorders: results from a national survey in Italy.

Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology·2026
Same author

Prevalence of mental disorders in people with intellectual disabilities across the lifespan: umbrella review.

BJPsych open·2026
Same author

Precision psychology and implementation science: optimising scale-up in mental health.

The Lancet. Global health·2026
Same author

Mental health in university students: an umbrella review grading the evidence for psychosocial interventions.

BMJ mental health·2026
Same author

Implementation and effectiveness of the WHO Self-Help Plus (SH+) intervention in the Gaza Strip: a prospective hybrid type 1 non-randomised study.

The Lancet regional health. Europe·2026
Same author

Sexual Dysfunction with Antipsychotics: Emerging Clues from a Disproportionality Analysis of the World Health Organization VigiBase.

Drug safety·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 27, 2026

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression
04:29

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression

Published on: January 7, 2019

29.7K

Vortioxetine for depression in adults.

Markus Koesters1, Giovanni Ostuzzi, Giuseppe Guaiana

  • 1Department of Psychiatry II, Ulm University, Ludwig-Heilmeyer-Str. 2, Guenzburg, Germany, D-89312.

The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
|July 6, 2017
PubMed
Summary

Vortioxetine may improve depression symptoms compared to placebo, but evidence quality is low. It shows no advantage over serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) and is less effective than duloxetine, though better tolerated. More research is needed, especially comparing it to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).

More Related Videos

Individualized rTMS Treatment for Depression using an fMRI-Based Targeting Method
07:12

Individualized rTMS Treatment for Depression using an fMRI-Based Targeting Method

Published on: August 2, 2021

4.3K
Conventional Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Depression: A Step-by-Step Protocol
10:54

Conventional Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Depression: A Step-by-Step Protocol

Published on: November 21, 2025

608

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Feb 27, 2026

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression
04:29

Vagus Nerve Stimulation As an Adjunctive Neurostimulation Tool in Treatment-resistant Depression

Published on: January 7, 2019

29.7K
Individualized rTMS Treatment for Depression using an fMRI-Based Targeting Method
07:12

Individualized rTMS Treatment for Depression using an fMRI-Based Targeting Method

Published on: August 2, 2021

4.3K
Conventional Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Depression: A Step-by-Step Protocol
10:54

Conventional Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Depression: A Step-by-Step Protocol

Published on: November 21, 2025

608

Area of Science:

  • Pharmacology and Psychiatry
  • Clinical Trial Analysis
  • Evidence-Based Medicine

Background:

  • Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a prevalent mental disorder causing significant impairment.
  • Existing treatments for depression have limitations in efficacy and tolerability.
  • Vortioxetine, a novel antidepressant, offers a potential alternative mechanism of action.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the efficacy and acceptability of vortioxetine against placebo and other antidepressants for acute depression.
  • To synthesize evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on vortioxetine's effectiveness and tolerability.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs comparing vortioxetine to placebo or other antidepressants.
  • Searched specialized databases up to May 2016, including regulatory reports and trial registries.
  • Analyzed intention-to-treat (ITT) data using random-effects models for efficacy and tolerability outcomes.

Main Results:

  • Vortioxetine showed potential benefits over placebo for response, remission, and symptom reduction (low to very low evidence quality).
  • No significant difference in dropout rates compared to placebo; higher discontinuation due to adverse effects but lower due to inefficacy.
  • Vortioxetine demonstrated no clear advantage over serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) and was less effective than duloxetine, but better tolerated than SNRIs and duloxetine (low to very low evidence quality).

Conclusions:

  • The clinical role of vortioxetine in acute depression remains uncertain due to low-quality evidence and lack of direct comparisons with SSRIs.
  • While potentially more effective than placebo, its clinical relevance is unclear; it offers no advantage over SNRIs.
  • Further high-quality RCTs directly comparing vortioxetine with SSRIs are necessary to establish its place in depression treatment guidelines.