A recent population-based cohort study examining cause-specific mortality in treatment-resistant major depression (TRD) revealed significant findings about the increased risks faced by those with TRD. The study, which analyzed data from over 176,000 Finnish patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD), found that approximately 11% of these patients developed TRD, meaning they did not respond to at least two adequate treatment trials.
Key findings include that patient’s with TRD had a 17% higher overall mortality rate compared to non-TRD patients. The study highlights that much of this elevated mortality stems from external causes, with TRD patients facing nearly double the risk of suicide and a 27% higher chance of accidental death. Factors like male gender, psychotic depression, and rapid failure of initial treatments were linked to higher mortality risks.
These findings highlight the importance of early intervention and aggressive treatment strategies for those diagnosed with TRD. The study suggests that clinicians should monitor patients closely and consider alternative therapeutic interventions, such as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) or transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), when conventional treatments fail
Link to the article: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165032724015490?via%3Dihub
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