Depression affects about 5 percent of the population of the United States at any given time, with women twice as likely to suffer the illness. Numerous antidepressant drugs are available to treat the disease, and most people respond to a combination of drugs and talk therapy. However, approximately 30 percent of the estimated 1.5 percent of the general population with severe, recurrent episodes of depression has a form that is resistant to conventional treatment. Vagus nerve stimulation with the NCP system has been used safely in Europe for the treatment of epileptic seizures since 1994 and in the U.S. since 1997. To be eligible for the study, a patient must be diagnosed with a major depressive episode, have a history of chronic depression or multiple episodes of major depression, and have a history of unsuccessful treatment with psychotherapy and medication.
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