NCT03432221

Brief Summary

Given the importance of cognitive function on depressed patients' treatment outcome and return to premorbid functioning, the effect of antidepressant drugs on cognition has become of primary concern. The aim of the present study is to assess the clinical outcome of switching from a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) to desvenlafaxine on cognitive function in a Spanish sample of adults with moderate to severe major depressive disorder (MDD). This open-label clinical study will include a total of 36 MDD outpatients receiving treatment with desvenlafaxine according to treating psychiatrist clinical judgment. The primary efficacy endpoint will be changes from baseline to week 12 in cognitive function measured by a composite z-score comprising the Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) and Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) scores. The secondary efficacy endpoints will involve depression severity, additional measures of subjective and objective cognitive function (including cold and hot cognitive function tasks), and functional status. A matched sample of 36 healthy controls will be assessed in order to obtain reference data for all cognitive function measurements. Patients with MDD and healthy controls will be compared regarding cognitive function both at baseline and after 12 weeks.

Trial Health

43
At Risk

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Trial has exceeded expected completion date
Enrollment
36

participants targeted

Target at P25-P50 for all trials

Timeline
Completed

Started Apr 2018

Geographic Reach
1 country

1 active site

Status
unknown

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

Click on a node to explore related trials.

Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

January 8, 2018

Completed
1 month until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

February 14, 2018

Completed
2 months until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

April 3, 2018

Completed
1.2 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

June 3, 2019

Completed
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

June 3, 2019

Completed
Last Updated

April 18, 2019

Status Verified

April 1, 2019

Enrollment Period

1.2 years

First QC Date

January 8, 2018

Last Update Submit

April 17, 2019

Conditions

Keywords

Cognition, antidepressants drugs, SNRI, hot cognition, functioning

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

  • Composite cognitive measure

    Composite z-score (Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST) + Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT))

    Change from baseline to 12 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (15)

  • Subjective cognitive function

    Baseline, 2nd week, 4th week, 6th week, 8th week, 10th week, 12th week

  • Attention

    Baseline and after 12 weeks

  • Processing speed

    Baseline and after 12 weeks

  • Verbal Memory

    Baseline and after 12 weeks

  • Executive Functions

    Baseline and after 12 weeks

  • +10 more secondary outcomes

Study Arms (2)

MDD

Patients who met DSM-5 criteria for MDD attending the outpatient psychiatric service of the Hospital Universitari Parc Taulí. Patients must have a lack of response to SSRI (Maximize dose for adequate time), being the next therapeutic option the introduction of desvenlafaxine.

Drug: Desvenlafaxine

Healthy Controls

Healthy participants matched by age, gender and educational level without history of psychiatric disorders and no familial history of mood disorders will be recruited

Interventions

Patients included in the study will receive antidepressant treatment with desvenlafaxine. The switch from SSRI to desvenlafaxine will coincide with the baseline visit (Visit 0). The dose of desvenlafaxine will be established based on clinical judgment. As the approach will be naturalistic, the inclusion in this study will not influence the clinical choice, hence changes in the pharmacological strategy will be permitted.

MDD

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years - 60 Years
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersYes
Age GroupsAdult (18-64)
Sampling MethodProbability Sample
Study Population

Patients attending at the outpatient unit at the Psychiatry Department of the Hospital Universitari Parc Taulí will be consecutively recruited until the study sample (36) is reached. Healthy controls will be seek from the same socio-demographic environment as patients (Vallès area, Spain)

You may qualify if:

  • MDD Patients in whom switching to desvenlafaxine is considered by treating psychiatrist as the next treatment option.
  • MDD diagnostic confirmation with the mini-international neuropsychiatric interview (MINI) (Sheehan et al., 1998),
  • Age range between 18 and 60
  • Non-response or incomplete response to a treatment with an SSRI in the current episode.
  • Score of 18 points or higher in the Hamilton depression rating scale (HAM-D-17) (Hamilton, 1967).

You may not qualify if:

  • Subjects will be excluded if they met criteria or had past history for the following disorders: posttraumatic stress disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, schizophrenia, psychotic, delusional, bipolar or substance abuse disorders. MINI will be used to exclude these potentially comorbid disorders.
  • Subjects with any present or past disease involving the nervous central system
  • A clinically significant unstable illness or clinically significant abnormal vital signs as determined by the investigator
  • Women entering the study could not be pregnant, and had to be oral contraceptive-free.

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (1)

Corporació Sanitària Parc Taulí

Sabadell, 08208, Spain

RECRUITING

Related Publications (19)

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    PMID: 20138370BACKGROUND
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  • Ferguson JM, Wesnes KA, Schwartz GE. Reboxetine versus paroxetine versus placebo: effects on cognitive functioning in depressed patients. Int Clin Psychopharmacol. 2003 Jan;18(1):9-14. doi: 10.1097/00004850-200301000-00002.

    PMID: 12490769BACKGROUND
  • Hammar A, Ardal G. Cognitive functioning in major depression--a summary. Front Hum Neurosci. 2009 Sep 25;3:26. doi: 10.3389/neuro.09.026.2009. eCollection 2009.

    PMID: 19826496BACKGROUND
  • Herrera-Guzman I, Gudayol-Ferre E, Herrera-Abarca JE, Herrera-Guzman D, Montelongo-Pedraza P, Padros Blazquez F, Pero-Cebollero M, Guardia-Olmos J. Major Depressive Disorder in recovery and neuropsychological functioning: effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and dual inhibitor depression treatments on residual cognitive deficits in patients with Major Depressive Disorder in recovery. J Affect Disord. 2010 Jun;123(1-3):341-50. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2009.10.009. Epub 2009 Nov 6.

    PMID: 19896719BACKGROUND
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    PMID: 19128810BACKGROUND
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    PMID: 17045658BACKGROUND
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    PMID: 15728756BACKGROUND
  • Lee RS, Hermens DF, Porter MA, Redoblado-Hodge MA. A meta-analysis of cognitive deficits in first-episode Major Depressive Disorder. J Affect Disord. 2012 Oct;140(2):113-24. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2011.10.023. Epub 2011 Nov 15.

    PMID: 22088608BACKGROUND
  • Levkovitz Y, Caftori R, Avital A, Richter-Levin G. The SSRIs drug Fluoxetine, but not the noradrenergic tricyclic drug Desipramine, improves memory performance during acute major depression. Brain Res Bull. 2002 Aug 15;58(4):345-50. doi: 10.1016/s0361-9230(01)00780-8.

    PMID: 12183009BACKGROUND
  • Martinez-Aran A, Scott J, Colom F, Torrent C, Tabares-Seisdedos R, Daban C, Leboyer M, Henry C, Goodwin GM, Gonzalez-Pinto A, Cruz N, Sanchez-Moreno J, Vieta E. Treatment nonadherence and neurocognitive impairment in bipolar disorder. J Clin Psychiatry. 2009 Jul;70(7):1017-23. doi: 10.4088/JCP.08m04408. Epub 2009 Jun 2.

    PMID: 19497247BACKGROUND
  • McIntyre RS, Lophaven S, Olsen CK. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of vortioxetine on cognitive function in depressed adults. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 2014 Oct;17(10):1557-67. doi: 10.1017/S1461145714000546. Epub 2014 Apr 30.

    PMID: 24787143BACKGROUND
  • Miskowiak KW, Carvalho AF. 'Hot' cognition in major depressive disorder: a systematic review. CNS Neurol Disord Drug Targets. 2014;13(10):1787-803. doi: 10.2174/1871527313666141130205713.

    PMID: 25470389BACKGROUND
  • Nierenberg AA, Husain MM, Trivedi MH, Fava M, Warden D, Wisniewski SR, Miyahara S, Rush AJ. Residual symptoms after remission of major depressive disorder with citalopram and risk of relapse: a STAR*D report. Psychol Med. 2010 Jan;40(1):41-50. doi: 10.1017/S0033291709006011. Epub 2009 May 22.

    PMID: 19460188BACKGROUND
  • Roiser JP, Sahakian BJ. Hot and cold cognition in depression. CNS Spectr. 2013 Jun;18(3):139-49. doi: 10.1017/S1092852913000072. Epub 2013 Mar 12.

    PMID: 23481353BACKGROUND
  • Trivedi MH, Greer TL. Cognitive dysfunction in unipolar depression: implications for treatment. J Affect Disord. 2014 Jan;152-154:19-27. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2013.09.012. Epub 2013 Sep 25.

    PMID: 24215896BACKGROUND
  • Wagner S, Doering B, Helmreich I, Lieb K, Tadic A. A meta-analysis of executive dysfunctions in unipolar major depressive disorder without psychotic symptoms and their changes during antidepressant treatment. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2012 Apr;125(4):281-92. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2011.01762.x. Epub 2011 Oct 18.

    PMID: 22007857BACKGROUND
  • Westheide J, Quednow BB, Kuhn KU, Hoppe C, Cooper-Mahkorn D, Hawellek B, Eichler P, Maier W, Wagner M. Executive performance of depressed suicide attempters: the role of suicidal ideation. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2008 Oct;258(7):414-21. doi: 10.1007/s00406-008-0811-1. Epub 2008 Mar 11.

    PMID: 18330667BACKGROUND
  • Vicent-Gil M, Trujols J, Sagues T, Serra-Blasco M, Navarra-Ventura G, Mantellini CL, Crivilles S, Portella MJ, Cardoner N. Insights on the cognitive enhancement effect of desvenlafaxine in major depressive disorder. Ann Gen Psychiatry. 2025 Mar 19;24(1):16. doi: 10.1186/s12991-025-00552-2.

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Depressive Disorder, Major

Interventions

Desvenlafaxine Succinate

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Depressive DisorderMood DisordersMental Disorders

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

CyclohexanolsHexanolsFatty AlcoholsAlcoholsOrganic ChemicalsCyclohexanesCycloparaffinsHydrocarbons, AlicyclicHydrocarbons, CyclicHydrocarbonsPhenolsBenzene DerivativesHydrocarbons, AromaticLipids

Central Study Contacts

Narcís Cardoner, MD, PhD

CONTACT

Maria Serra-Blasco, PhD

CONTACT

Study Design

Study Type
observational
Observational Model
CASE CONTROL
Time Perspective
PROSPECTIVE
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
PI Title
Narcís Cardoner, MD, PhD

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

January 8, 2018

First Posted

February 14, 2018

Study Start

April 3, 2018

Primary Completion

June 3, 2019

Study Completion

June 3, 2019

Last Updated

April 18, 2019

Record last verified: 2019-04

Locations