Cortical inhibition, facilitation and plasticity in late-life depression: effects of venlafaxine pharmacotherapy.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Late-life depression is often associated with non-response or relapse following conventional antidepressant treatment. The pathophysiology of late-life depression likely involves a complex interplay between aging and depression, and may include abnormalities in cortical inhibition and plasticity. However, the extent to which these cortical processes are modifiable by antidepressant pharmacotherapy is unknown.

Methods

Sixty-eight patients with late-life depression received 12 weeks of treatment with open-label venlafaxine, a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (≤ 300 mg/d). We combined transcranial magnetic stimulation of the left motor cortex with electromyography recordings from the right hand to measure cortical inhibition using contralateral cortical si

SUBMITTER: Lissemore JI 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7955845 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature