Full Text View  
  Tabular View  
  Contacts and Locations  
  No Study Results Posted  
  Related Studies  
Neural Correlates of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy for Depression
This study is currently recruiting participants.
Verified by Massachusetts General Hospital, December 2008
Sponsors and Collaborators: Massachusetts General Hospital
Hope for Depression Research Foundation
Information provided by: Massachusetts General Hospital
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00812227
  Purpose

The purpose of this study is to see whether we can predict which patients with depression will get better when we treat them with psychodynamic psychotherapy. We will use neuroimaging (a method of looking at brain activity) in this study. We want to see whether there are changes in the brains of patients receiving this type of therapy. We hypothesize that these changes may predict how well certain parts of the psychotherapy treatment process works.


Condition Intervention
Major Depressive Disorder
Behavioral: Psychodynamic Psychotherapy

MedlinePlus related topics: Depression
U.S. FDA Resources
Study Type: Interventional
Study Design: Treatment, Open Label, Single Group Assignment
Official Title: Neural Correlates of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy for Depression

Further study details as provided by Massachusetts General Hospital:

Primary Outcome Measures:
  • Correlation between clinical response (defined as >50% change in HAMD-17 from beginning to endpoint) and changes in QEEG average frontal theta power from treatment initiation to two weeks after starting treatment [ Time Frame: Weeks 0 through 16 ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]

Estimated Enrollment: 45
Study Start Date: August 2008
Estimated Primary Completion Date: August 2010 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)
Arms Assigned Interventions
Psychodynamic psychotherapy: Experimental Behavioral: Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
Screened and eligible patients will receive 16 individual sessions of psychodynamic psychotherapy, each lasting 45-50 minutes.

Detailed Description:

In this study, we will treat patients with brief psychodynamic psychotherapy. Psychodynamic psychotherapy is a type of treatment that may be as helpful as medications in treating depression. It focuses on thoughts, feelings, and behaviors as well as both current and past relationships. Psychotherapy explores better ways of coping with feelings, expressing needs, and interacting with others in order to cope with depression and other life problems. Subjects will go to 16 weekly, 45-minute, individual sessions of psychodynamic psychotherapy over the course of the study. At five times throughout the study, subjects will come in for extra visits, which last approximately 1.5 hours and which include: speaking with a study doctor about depressive symptoms, filling out extra questionnaires, and performing a Quantitative Electroencephalogram (QEEG). The QEEG is a machine that measures the electrical activity of the brain. This task will take approximately 15 minutes.

Subjects will also have the opportunity to participate in an additional positron emission tomography (PET) component of the study, for which additional compensation will be made based on the time commitment.

  Eligibility

Ages Eligible for Study:   18 Years to 55 Years
Genders Eligible for Study:   Both
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:   No
Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Subjects will be adults, ages 18 to 55 years;
  • Able to provide written informed consent;
  • MDD, current according to the fourth version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-IV);
  • QIDS-SR score of > 12 at screen;
  • Current major depressive episode (MDE) length of < 1 year;
  • Treated with an SSRI or SNRI at adequate doses (defined as 20 mg/day or more of fluoxetine, citalopram, or paroxetine; 10 mg/day or more of escitalopram; 50 mg/day or more of sertraline; 75 mg/day or more of venlafaxine; 15 mg/day of mirtazapine; or 40 mg/day of duloxetine) during the current episode for at least 8 weeks; and,
  • At the time of screen visit, patients must be on a stable dose of SSRI or SNRI for the past 4 weeks.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Pregnant women or women of child bearing potential who are not using a medically accepted means of contraception (to include oral contraceptive or implant, condom, diaphragm, spermicide, intrauterine device, tubal ligation, or a partner with vasectomy). Women of childbearing age who wish to enter the study will be required to undergo a pregnancy test (beta-HCG) prior to initiating treatment;
  • Patients who, in the investigator's judgment, pose a current, serious suicidal or homicidal risk. These patients will be immediately referred to appropriate clinical treatment;
  • Patients who, in the opinion of the therapist, are not depressed at the time of their first psychotherapy visit;
  • Patients who are currently being treated by a psychotherapist individually or in a group or who have received individual or group psychotherapy during the past 6 months. Couples therapy and family therapy will not be considered exclusionary criteria;
  • Patients with neurological illnesses, including a history of seizure or head trauma with loss of consciousness;
  • Patients with unstable diabetes, kidney disease, or significant medical illness;
  • Patients with history of allergy to FDG will be excluded from taking part in the PET portion of the study;
  • The following DSM-IV diagnoses: substance use disorders active within the last six months, any bipolar disorder (current or past), any psychotic disorder (current or past), any post-traumatic stress disorder (current or past), any obsessive compulsive disorder (current or past), or any panic disorder (current or past). Generalized anxiety disorder or adjustment disorder are not exclusionary;
  • Patients currently requiring other psychotropic medications, including anticonvulsants, benzodiazepines, antipsychotics, stimulants, or sedative hypnotics (other than diphenhydramine);
  • Psychotic features in the current episode, or a history of psychotic features, as assessed by SCID;
  • Patients who have undergone > 3 previous adequate attempts at psychodynamic psychotherapy (deemed "adequate" by the screening physician), which were considered unhelpful or unsuccessful by patient report (according to patient report);
  • Patients with a history of antidepressant-induced hypomania; and
  • Patients with a history of medication non-compliance.
  • Patients with Axis II pathology (personality disorder) that, in the opinion of the screening physician, would interfere with subjects' ability to participate in the treatment and/or comply with the protocol, such as severe borderline or narcissistic personality disorder.
  • Patients who have had electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) within the 12 months preceding baseline
  Contacts and Locations
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00812227

Contacts
Contact: Sarah E Chuzi, BA (617)724-3520 schuzi@partners.org

Locations
United States, Massachusetts
Depression Clinical and Research Program Recruiting
Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02114
Contact: Sarah E Chuzi, BA     617-724-3520     schuzi@partners.org    
Principal Investigator: Joshua Roffman, MD            
Principal Investigator: Janet Witte, MD, MPH            
Sponsors and Collaborators
Massachusetts General Hospital
Hope for Depression Research Foundation
Investigators
Principal Investigator: Joshua Roffman, MD Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry
Principal Investigator: Janet Witte, MD, MPH Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry
  More Information

Responsible Party: Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry ( Joshua Roffman, MD )
Study ID Numbers: 2008-P-001181
Study First Received: December 18, 2008
Last Updated: December 19, 2008
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00812227  
Health Authority: United States: Institutional Review Board

Keywords provided by Massachusetts General Hospital:
Depression
Psychotherapy
Neuroimaging
Subjects with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)

Study placed in the following topic categories:
Depression
Mental Disorders
Mood Disorders
Depressive Disorder, Major
Depressive Disorder
Behavioral Symptoms

ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on January 13, 2009