Proton MRS Study of SSRI-Zolpidem Interactions

Completed · Early Phase 1 · Has a placebo group

Conditions studied: Depression

In brief

The primary goal of this single-blind, placebo-controlled, within-subjects, double-scan, one-visit neuroimaging study is to examine the effects of the hypnotic zolpidem (Ambien®) in individuals who are maintained on selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for the treatment of major depressive disorder. Specifically, levels of the brain chemical GABA will be examined in the anterior cingulate and thalamus, two brain regions that play important roles in mediating some of the effects of depression and sleep-related drugs, respectively. Depressed individuals typically have lower levels of GABA than the healthy population, and antidepressant treatment has been shown to help normalize this neurochemical in conjunction with improved mood. Given that individuals maintained on SSRIs often are prescribed sedative/hypnotics to treat concurrent insomnia, understanding a possible neurochemical interaction between them, whether beneficial or harmful, is important for informing evidence-based treatment strategies to treat the co-morbid patient. Zolpidem's effects on GABA in participants who are maintained on SSRIs will be compared to baseline GABA levels in these individuals (i.e., following placebo administration). Two separate scanning sessions lasting approximately 45-60 min each will take place within one single study visit in order to obtain these measurements using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H MRS). This type of neuroimaging is like an MRI in that it is non-invasive, but it permits us to obtain information about chemicals in the brain. A secondary goal of this study is to compare the subjective drug effects, or how individuals feel, following the intervention. These measures will be used to determine the existence of brain-behavior relationships in order to assess the extent to which modulating GABA with zolpidem has effects on mood states in depressed participants. Collectively, this study will contribute to our understanding of how these drugs exert their effects when one is administered in the presence of the other, and it will demonstrate that imaging is an important tool for informing us about how drug effects in the brain ultimately result in behavior.

Key facts

Study ID
NCT01809626
Run by
Mclean Hospital
People needed
14
Starts
2010-05-01
Expected to finish
2012-12-01
Last updated by the study team
2013-03-13

Who can join

Age: 21 and older, up to 40. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

Where it is running

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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