The available evidence suggests the early changes in cognition may predict treatment response in individuals with MDD .
The results depict an emerging trend towards early changes in facial emotion recognition ( i.e. , a hot cognitive process ) as a predictor of treatment outcome .
Conclusion : The identification of reliable early treatment predictors of antidepressant response would be clinical ly significant , enabling clinicians to more accurately evaluate the efficacy of selected treatment avenues .
HIGHLIGHTSCognitive dysfunction is a principal feature and determinant of health outcome in MDD.Cognitive changes have shown to occur prior to improvements in mood symptoms .
Early changes in emotional processing may predict treatment response in MDD
Background : Despite the widespread use of antidepressants in clinical practice , the current trial‐ and ‐error approach to medication selection contributes to treatment failure and underscores the need to identify reliable predictors of antidepressant response .
Since changes in measures of cognition have been reported to occur early in treatment and prior to improvements in overall mood symptoms , the present review aims to determine whether early changes in measures of cognition can predict response in individuals with MDD .
Antidepressant Drug Treatment Modifies the Neural Processing of Nonconscious Threat Cues
BACKGROUND The amygdala is believed to play a key role in processing emotionally salient , threat-relevant , events that require further online processing by cortical regions . Emotional disorders such as depression and anxiety have been associated with hyperactivity of the amygdala , but it is unknown whether antidepressant treatment directly affects amygdala responses to emotionally significant information . METHODS The current study assessed the effects of 7 days administration of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor ( SSRI ) , citalopram , on amygdala responses to masked presentations of fearful and happy facial expressions in never-depressed volunteers using blood oxygenation level-dependent ( BOLD ) functional magnetic resonance imaging . A double-blind , between-groups design was used with volunteers r and omized to 20 mg/day citalopram versus placebo . RESULTS Volunteers receiving citalopram showed decreased amygdala responses to masked presentations of threat compared with those receiving placebo . Citalopram also reduced responses within the hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex ( mPFC ) specifically during the fear-relevant stimuli . These neural differences were accompanied by decreased recognition of fearful facial expressions assessed after the scan . By contrast , there was no effect of citalopram on the neural or behavioral response to the happy facial expressions . CONCLUSIONS These results suggest a direct effect of serotonin potentiation on amygdala response to threat-relevant stimuli in humans . Such effects may be important in the therapeutic actions of antidepressants in depression and anxiety
The available evidence suggests the early changes in cognition may predict treatment response in individuals with MDD .
The results depict an emerging trend towards early changes in facial emotion recognition ( i.e. , a hot cognitive process ) as a predictor of treatment outcome .
Conclusion : The identification of reliable early treatment predictors of antidepressant response would be clinical ly significant , enabling clinicians to more accurately evaluate the efficacy of selected treatment avenues .
HIGHLIGHTSCognitive dysfunction is a principal feature and determinant of health outcome in MDD.Cognitive changes have shown to occur prior to improvements in mood symptoms .
Early changes in emotional processing may predict treatment response in MDD
Background : Despite the widespread use of antidepressants in clinical practice , the current trial‐ and ‐error approach to medication selection contributes to treatment failure and underscores the need to identify reliable predictors of antidepressant response .
Since changes in measures of cognition have been reported to occur early in treatment and prior to improvements in overall mood symptoms , the present review aims to determine whether early changes in measures of cognition can predict response in individuals with MDD .