Use of an MMPI scale to predict antidepressant response to lithium

Previous research has indicated that a subset of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) items may be able to predict antidepressant treatment response to lithium. Twenty-one patients with major depressive disorder were assigned to treatment with lithium based on this MMPI lithium response scale. Twenty lithium-assigned patients completed the 4-week trial. Sixty percent of these patients showed a 50% reduction in Hamilton depression scores. This response rate is similar to results obtained in studies using no selection criteria in the treatment of depression with lithium.