Vagus Nerve Stimulation: A Little-Known Option for Depression
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Standard therapies for depression are antidepressants and psychotherapy. In particularly severe cases, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) or vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) may also be indicated. VNS is an approved, effective, well-tolerated, long-term therapy for chronic and therapy-resistant depression, write Christine Reif-Leonhardt, MD, and her team of researchers from the University Hospital Frankfurt am Main, Germany, in a recent journal article. In contrast to more common treatments, such as ECT, VNS is little known in the general population and among specialists. The cost of VNS is covered by health insurance funds in Germany.
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@timir The largest long-term study is a registry study in which 494 patients with therapy-resistant depression received the combination of the usual antidepressant therapy and VNS. The study lasted 5 years; 301 patients served as a control group and received the usual therapy. The cumulative response to the therapy (68% vs 41%) and the remission rate (43% vs 26%) were significantly greater in the group that received VNS, according to the authors. Patients who underwent at least one ECT series of at least seven sessions responded particularly well to VNS. The combined therapy was also more effective in ECT nonresponders than the usual therapy alone.