Impacts of inflammatory cytokines on depression: a cohort study

Inflammatory factors are associated with depression. We seek to investigate the correlation between inflammatory cytokines and prognosis of depression or suicidal ideation and behavior at 3 months in depression patients.

Eighty-two depressed outpatients were recruited and treated as usual. Plasma cytokines were measured at baseline. Patients were followed up with Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and suicidal ideation and behavior according to the item 3 of Hamilton depression scale for 3 months.

Compared to the depression patients with low level of interleukin-1β, the high one had severe depressive symptoms at month 2 and 3 (B 0.92, P < 0.01; B 0.86, P = 0.02; respectively). The incidence of suicidal ideation or behavior was 18.3% at 3 months. Depression patients with high levels of tumor necrosis factor-α showed high risk of suicidal ideation and behavior than the low one (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.00-4.65, P = 0.04).

High levels of interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor-α were predictive of middle-term severe depressive symptoms and suicidal ideation and behavior respectively.