Clinical Research Directory

Home tDCS for the Treatment of Major Depression.

The purpose of this multicentric randomized controlled trial is to compare the effectiveness and safety of home-based tDCS for the treatment of major depression versus tDCS treatment in a healthcare centre, and explore the effects of an accelerated home-tDCS protocol. The change in depression index at the end of treatment, measured with MADRS, will be the primary outcome.

Digital Interventions for Relapse Prevention in Adolescence

Some adolescents experience periods of anxiety and/or depression, and some find that these periods return over time. The purpose of this study is to examine whether digital interventions-where individuals work systematically with their own thoughts and feelings during periods when they feel well-can help them maintain well-being for longer. The study includes adolescents aged 16-19 who have previously experienced episodes of depression and/or anxiety to a degree that led them to seek help (e.g., from a school nurse, general practitioner, health clinic, or child and adolescent mental health service). Through a research app on their smartphones, participants complete tasks and answer questionnaires. The study is fully digital. Some participants meet with a therapist in digital group sessions, while others work independently with the digital content. We will also examine the cost-benefit aspects of offering such interventions. If the study achieves its goals, digital interventions may eventually become a service offered to adolescents recovering from depression and anxiety.

Neuromodulation and Attention Deficits in MDD

Multimodal study (Behavior, TMS, EEG) combining a sham-controlled intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) intervention with an additional-singleton task and EEG to evaluate whether left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) stimulation enhances cognitive control and modulates maladaptive attention processes in MDD and whether the effects are influenced by neuronavigated versus manual (Beam F3 method) localization of the stimulation site.

Molecular Signatures of TMS Response in Treatment-Resistant Depression

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) therapy is an approved and effective treatment option for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). This study aims to identify biomarkers that predict TMS treatment response in TRD, provide insights into the neurobiological mechanisms underlying TMS efficacy, and contribute to personalized treatment strategies. By establishing proteomic and metabolomic signatures, this research seeks to enhance clinical decision-making, reduce healthcare costs, and improve patient outcomes in TRD. The findings will align with the precision medicine movement in psychiatry, advancing biomarker-driven therapeutic approaches for treatment-resistant depression.

The OBSERVE Protocol

This observational protocol is intended to provide long-term follow-up data on patients initiating or continuing treatment with either Spravato® or IV ketamine. This can provide us information on the patient acceptability and satisfaction, patterns of use, long-term effectiveness, and safety of the two approaches. This 5-year, 6-site study will enroll 450 total patients. The sites will comprise 3 academic medical centers and 3 community psychiatric practices.

Study of the Safety, Tolerability, Electrophysiological Effects and Efficacy of DMT in Humans

The goal of this phase 1 study is to investigate the safety and efficacy of dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in individuals with depression and healthy controls. We hypothesize that administration of DMT will result in decreases in depression, associated symptoms, and neuroplastic changes in depressed subjects. We expect that DMT will induce changes in neuroplasticity as indexed using electroencephalographic (EEG) measures and tasks in both depressed individuals and healthy volunteers, though to different degrees. These neuronal changes may in parallel cause changes in mood measured both in healthy and depressed subjects, which will be captured using appropriate psychometric measures of mood.