Raised Plasma Levels of Tumor Necrosis Factor α in Patients With Depression

TLDR

The study aimed to determine whether electroconvulsive therapy could reduce plasma tumor necrosis factor‑α levels in patients with depressive disorders. Researchers longitudinally measured TNF‑α in 23 depressed patients (15 receiving ECT, 8 not) and 15 matched healthy controls before, during, and after repeated ECT sessions. ECT was associated with a significant, gradual decline in TNF‑α that reached healthy control levels, whereas non‑ECT patients showed persistently elevated TNF‑α, supporting a link between inflammation and severe depression and suggesting ECT down‑regulates immune activation.

Abstract

To examine whether electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) could modulate tumor necrosis factor (TNF)alpha levels in patients with depressive disorders.Plasma levels of TNFalpha were analyzed in 23 depressed patients, mainly with severe depressive disorders, and in 15 sex- and age-matched healthy controls. Fifteen depressed patients were followed longitudinally with measurement of TNFalpha before, during, and after repeated ECT treatment. For comparison, TNFalpha levels were also analyzed longitudinally in the 8 depressed patients not receiving ECT.Patients with depressive disorders had markedly raised TNFalpha levels compared with healthy controls. The clinical improvement during repeated ECT was accompanied by a gradual and significant decline in TNFalpha level, reaching levels comparable with those in healthy controls at the end of the study. Such a decline was not seen in the depressed patients not receiving ECT, who instead showed raised TNFalpha levels throughout the study period.Our findings support an association between inflammation and TNFalpha in particular and severe depression, and suggest that ECT may down-regulate this immune activation.