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OPTIMUM-D
OPTIMUM-D (Optimized Predictive Treatment in Medications for Unipolar Major Depression) is a treatment study investigating whether using personalized treatment approaches can improve outcomes for people experiencing depression. The study aims to determine whether predicting who may need combined medication treatment can help individuals receive more effective treatment sooner.
Why is this study important?
No single antidepressant works for everyone. While some people improve with one medication, others require a combination of treatments before their symptoms begin to improve. Currently, clinicians often need to wait several weeks before knowing whether a treatment is working, which can delay recovery.
Research suggests we may be able to predict who is likely to benefit from combination treatment using patterns of symptoms and brain activity. OPTIMUM-D is investigating whether using these predictions can help people receive the treatment that is most likely to work for them from the very beginning.
What is the aim of OPTIMUM-D?
The aim of OPTIMUM-D is to determine whether a more personalized approach to depression treatment can help people recover sooner. We want to find out whether starting combined medication treatment right away can improve outcomes for individuals who are predicted to not respond to an antidepressant alone.
At the end of the study, we hope to answer two questions:
1) Does combined treatment lead to better outcomes?
2) Does choosing treatment based on prediction improve outcomes of depression?
What does participation involve?
Interested participants will first be assessed by a psychiatrist and a specialized depression care team to see if this project might be a good fit for them
Screening visit
This visit includes physical and mental assessments to confirm your eligibility.
Found eligible
Enrolled into the study
Participants will receive gold standard antidepressant treatment for 12 weeks, with assessments every 2 weeks
These assessments will vary in length and include clinical visits, self-report questionnaires, cognitive tests, interviews, brain imaging, biospecimen collection and blood work
Some visits may be conducted remotely, but a minimum of 3 visits will be held in person at the DCRP in Halifax in the Abbie J Lane building of the QEII.
Interested participants from outside the HRM should contact the DCRP for information on travel accommodations.
Who is eligible?
Ages of 18 to 65
Currently experiencing depression
Able to attend in person appointments in Halifax, Nova Scotia
Certain additional criteria must be met, which will be assessed during a pre-screening conversation and at the screening visit.
The OPTIMUM-D team
Nicole Stinson, Project Coordinator
(902) 473 5313
Jessica Toombs, Project Coordinator
(902) 473 5313
Rudolf Uher, MD, PhD,
Principal Investigator
(902) 473 2585
OPTIMUM-D is part of the Canadian Biomarker Integration Network in Depression (CANBIND). You can read more about CANBIND here. OPTIMUM-D is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Ontario Brain Institute.