This story was first published in digitalhealth.net
Blood test identifies best suited depression treatment
Research by King’s College London has found that carrying out a blood test could help doctors pick the most suitable drug for patients suffering with depression.
Currently, most doctors rely on trial and error when issuing prescriptions for depression. However, data has shown that half of antidepressant drugs prescribed in the first instance fail to work.
The research found that testing a patients blood for inflammation, will identify which patients need more aggressive therapy from the get go, helping doctors to tailer the treatment to patients’ individual needs.
The specialised blood tests have been trailed on a small number of volunteers and are due be used in a larger trial to examine how the test might work in the real life circumstances.
Lead researcher Professor Carmine Pariante said: “About a third of patients might have these inflammatory markers and they would be people we might encourage to go on more aggressive treatment. We would not want to go in prescribing too much medicine if it's not necessary, but we would want to escalate people sooner rather than later if they need it."
Pariante cautioned: "Patients should not change their medication on their own or take an anti-inflammatory without guidance from their doctor."
Stephen Buckley from the mental health charity Mind said: "Different people will find that different treatments help to manage their mental health - what is most important is that people have the knowledge needed to access the treatment that works for them, whether this is medication, or alternatives such as talking therapies, or a mixture of both."
Jenny Edwards of the Mental Health Foundation said: "If this test is as comprehensive and effective as thought then today's news could mark a real sea-change in treatment."
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