Omega-3 Fatty Acids for Treating Adults With Major Depression

Omega-3 Fatty Acids for Treatment of Major Depression: Differential Effects of EPA and DHA, and Associated Biochemical and Immune Parameters

This study will test the effectiveness of two different kinds of omega-3 fatty acid dietary supplements in treating the symptoms of major depression.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Depression
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: EPA omega-3 fatty acid; Dietary supplement: DHA omega-3 fatty acid; Dietary supplement: Placebo comparator

Detailed Description

Major depression is a common mental disorder that affects millions of people each year. It can severely impact a person's life, causing someone to often feel sad and hopeless, as well as affect a person's sleep patterns, concentration, and energy levels. Despite the availability of numerous therapies, current treatments are not ideal for some people. Recently, some research has shown that an increase in dietary intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), such as omega-3 fatty acid, might help treat depression. Eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) and docosahexanoic acid (DHA) are two common types of PUFAs high in omega-3 fatty acids and are available in low dosages in some dietary supplements. The purpose of this study is to compare the effectiveness of an EPA-enriched mixture versus pure DHA versus a placebo in treating the symptoms of major depression.

Participants in this double blind study will be randomly assigned to one of three study groups. Participants assigned to the first study group will receive capsules containing 500 mg of an EPA-enriched omega-3 fatty acid preparation. Participants assigned to the second study group will receive capsules containing 500 mg of pure DHA. Participants assigned to the third study group will receive capsules containing a placebo. The study will last approximately 9 weeks. This will include an initial screening the first week followed by an 8-week period during which all participants will take two capsules of their assigned treatment each morning. Participants will attend a total of six study visits. The initial visit will last approximately 2 hours and will include a psychiatric assessment, urine and blood collection, an electrocardiogram (EKG), and a Food Processor Questionnaire. Participants who qualify for further participation will then enter a 1-week washout period during which they will stop taking any current psychotropic medication. At the second study visit, participants will be assigned to their treatment group. Upon starting assigned treatments, participants will then return for study visits every 2 weeks to report any possible side effects and to complete standard psychiatric assessment tests. All of these study visits will take approximately 1 hour, except the last, which will take 2 hours. In addition to the psychiatric assessment and review of side effects, the final study visit will also include a physical exam and blood collection.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 196
• Phase: Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • California
    • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90048
      • Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 80 years (ADULT, OLDER_ADULT)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Meets DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder
• A Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) score greater than 3
• A Baseline Hamilton-D-17 (HAM-D-17) (Hamilton, 1960,1967) score of ³ 15
• Willing to use effective forms of contraception

Exclusion Criteria:

• Pregnant
• Suicidal or homicidal
• Serious or unstable medical illness, including cardiovascular, liver, kidney, respiratory, endocrine, neuralgic, or blood disease
• History of seizure disorder
• History of organic mental disorders, substance abuse, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, delusional disorder, bipolar disorder, or other psychotic disorders
• History of inflammatory or auto-immune disorder (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, or cancer
• History of multiple adverse drug reactions or an allergy to the study drugs
• Mood-congruent or mood-incongruent psychotic features
• Current use of other psychotropic drugs
• Clinical or laboratory evidence of hypothyroidism
• Failed to respond during the course of current major depressive episode to at least one adequate antidepressant trial, defined as 6 weeks or more of treatment with 40 mg/day of citalopram (or its antidepressant equivalent)
• Received electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) within 6 months of study entry
• Currently taking supplements enriched with omega-3 fatty acids (e.g., flax seed oil) or has taken at least 1 g/day of omega-3 fatty acids
• Consuming a diet that contains more than 3g/day of omega-3 fatty acids at study entry
• Taking anticoagulants or history of a bleeding disorder
• Patients who are currently in psychotherapy that was initiated within 90 days prior to the study screening visit.
• Current infection
• Use of systematic corticosteroid or steroid antagonists or other immunosuppressant agents (e.g., cyclosporine, interferon)
• Smokes more than 10 cigarettes per day
• Taking a vitamin E supplement greater than 400 IU

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: TREATMENT
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Interventional Model: PARALLEL
• Masking: DOUBLE

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: A; Participants will take EPA	Dietary supplement: EPA omega-3 fatty acid; 1 gram per day of an EPA-enriched mixture for 8 weeks
EXPERIMENTAL: B; Participants will take DHA	Dietary supplement: DHA omega-3 fatty acid; 1 gram per day of pure DHA for 8 weeks
PLACEBO_COMPARATOR: C; Participants will take placebo	Dietary supplement: Placebo comparator; 1 gram per day of an inactive substance for 8 weeks

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Depression rating scale score on HAM-D 17, SCID Mood Module	Both measured at Week 8

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
• Collaborators: National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH); Massachusetts General Hospital
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Mark H. Rapaport, MD, Emory University

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Appleton KM, Voyias PD, Sallis HM, Dawson S, Ness AR, Churchill R, Perry R. Omega-3 fatty acids for depression in adults. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021 Nov 24;11(11):CD004692. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD004692.pub5.
• Mischoulon D, Nierenberg AA, Schettler PJ, Kinkead BL, Fehling K, Martinson MA, Hyman Rapaport M. A double-blind, randomized controlled clinical trial comparing eicosapentaenoic acid versus docosahexaenoic acid for depression. J Clin Psychiatry. 2015 Jan;76(1):54-61. doi: 10.4088/JCP.14m08986.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: July 1, 2006
• Primary Completion (ACTUAL): January 1, 2011
• Study Completion (ACTUAL): January 1, 2011

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 14, 2007
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 14, 2007
• First Posted (ESTIMATE): August 16, 2007

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (ESTIMATE): April 4, 2013
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 2, 2013
• Last Verified: April 1, 2013

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Major Depressive Disorder; Omega-3; Major Depression
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Mental Disorders; Mood Disorders; Depression; Depressive Disorder; Depressive Disorder, Major
• Other Study ID Numbers: R01MH073765 (NIH); DATR A5-ETMA (Other Identifier: NIH)