Pretreatment frontal EEG and changes in suicidal ideation during SSRI treatment in major depressive disorder

D. V. Iosifescu, S. Greenwald, P. Devlin, R. H. Perlis, J. W. Denninger, J. E. Alpert, M. Fava

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

30 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objective: We investigated frontal quantitative EEG (QEEG) as predictor of changes in suicidal ideation (SI) during SSRI treatment in major depressive disorder (MDD). Method: Eighty-two subjects meeting DSM-IV criteria for MDD entered an 8-week, prospective, open-label treatment with flexible dose SSRIs and completed at least 4 weeks of treatment. We assessed MDD severity with the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D-17); change in SI was measured with HAM-D item no. 3. We recorded four-channel EEGs (F7-Fpz, F8-Fpz, A1-Fpz, A2-Fpz) before treatment. Results: During the first 4 weeks of treatment 9 (11%) subjects experienced worsening SI. Left-right asymmetry of combined theta + alpha power correlated significantly with change in SI from baseline, even when adjusting for changes in depression severity (HAM-D-17) and for the SSRI utilized. Conclusion: Frontal QEEG parameters before treatment may predict worsening SI during SSRI treatment in MDD.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)271-276
Number of pages6
JournalActa Psychiatrica Scandinavica
Volume117
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 2008
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Major depressive disorder
  • Quantitative electroencephalography
  • Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
  • Suicidal ideation

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Psychiatry and Mental health

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