Vagal Nerve Simulation (VNS) Therapy: A VNS Therapy System used for vagus nerve stimulation and consisting of an implantable VNS Therapy generator, lead, and external programming system.
Study summary
The primary objective of this study is to assess short, mid and long-term clinical outcomes in patients with difficult to treat depression (such as patients with treatment resistant depression) treated with Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) Therapy as adjunctive therapy.
Eligibility
Sex
ALL
Min age
18 Years
Max age
—
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion Criteria:
* Be at least 18 years of age.
* Have a documented primary diagnosis of chronic (\>2 years) or recurrent (2 or more prior episodes) major depressive episode that has not adequately responded to an adequate number of antidepressant treatments, as per local medical standards. This diagnosis must be confirmed using the MINI.
* Provide written Ethics Committee (EC) or Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved informed consent and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA, US only) authorization (as applicable according to local requirements).
* Currently is receiving at least one antidepressant treatment (i.e., antidepressant drug, maintenance electroconvulsive therapy, or formal psychotherapy including supportive psychotherapy) or mood stabilizing treatment for bipolar patients (such as lithium, anticonvulsants, or atypical antipsychotics).
* Able and willing to comply with the frequency of (outpatient) clinic visits and to reliably complete all the evaluations as specified in the study protocol.Hence based on the nature of their disease, the following patients should not be included: patients with mental retardation, current severe or significant substance/alcohol abuse, diagnosis of one or more schizophrenia-spectrum or other psychotic disorders, diagnosis of borderline or severe personality disorder as determined by clinical judgment which, in the investigator's opinion, would significantly interfere with subject's participation in the study)
Exclusion Criteria:
There are no exclusion criteria; the investigator should refer to the (local applicable) VNS Therapy Physician's Manual.
Primary outcome measure(s)
The primary endpoint of this study is response defined as reduction in Montgomery Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total score of at least 50% from baseline to 12 months post implant. — 12 months MADRS is a 10-item diagnostic questionnaire used to measure the severity of depressive episodes in patients with mood disorders. Each item yields a score of 0 to 6. The overall score ranges from 0 to 60. Higher MADRS score indicates more severe depression.
A 'Responder' is a subject that achieved ≥ 50% reduction from baseline in MADRS total score at the M12 assessment. A 'Non-Responder' is any patient who did not achieve ≥ 50% reduction from baseline in MADRS score at the M12 assessment.
No formal hypothesis testing is presented; all the proposed statistical tests are descriptive in nature.
The Primary endpoint analysis as defined above will be done only on patients that are enrolled while in a major depressive episode (MDE); the cut off point for current MDE at time of implant will be a MADRS score of 20.
For the patients with a MADRS score below 20 at time of enrollment, only the continuous change in MADRS can be described (as the MADRS can only worsen or stay the same).
This page summarises publicly available registry data for informational purposes — not medical advice. Eligibility is determined by each study team; patients should discuss participation with their clinician.
We use cookies to analyse site traffic and improve your experience. With your consent, we may also use cookies for advertising. You can change your choice at any time on our Cookie Policy page. See also our Privacy Policy.