A Study to Assess Effectiveness and Efficiency of VNS Therapy in Patients With Difficult to Treat Depression.

NCT ID: NCT03320304

Last Updated: 2025-12-10

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Total Enrollment

500 participants

Study Classification

OBSERVATIONAL

Study Start Date

2017-12-14

Study Completion Date

2031-12-01

Brief Summary

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The primary objective of this study is to assess short, mid and long-term clinical outcomes in patients with difficult to treat depression (such as patients with treatment resistant depression) treated with Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) Therapy as adjunctive therapy.

Detailed Description

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The population under study comprises a real-world patient population with difficult to treat depression: patients diagnosed with unipolar or bipolar disorder with chronic or recurrent depression who fail to achieve an adequate response to standard psychiatric management.

The diagnosis of depression and comorbid disorders will be determined based on the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI).

A minimum of five hundred (500) patients will be implanted with a VNS Therapy System and up to eighty (80) sites may participate in this study.

Enrollment will take 8 years, based on competitive enrollment. For each subject a baseline visit will occur between 1 and 6 weeks before implant.

Once implanted with the device, subjects will be followed-up for a minimum of 36 months and a maximum of 60 months. The study may stop when the last subject has reached the 36 months follow-up.

Conditions

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Treatment Resistant Depression

Study Design

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Observational Model Type

COHORT

Study Time Perspective

PROSPECTIVE

Study Groups

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Vagal Nerve Simulation (VNS) Therapy

The aim of this study is to include patients with difficult to treat depression from a global "real world" (standard of care) population who are referred for treatment with VNS Therapy.

Vagal Nerve Simulation (VNS) Therapy

Intervention Type DEVICE

A VNS Therapy System used for vagus nerve stimulation and consisting of an implantable VNS Therapy generator, lead, and external programming system.

Interventions

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Vagal Nerve Simulation (VNS) Therapy

A VNS Therapy System used for vagus nerve stimulation and consisting of an implantable VNS Therapy generator, lead, and external programming system.

Intervention Type DEVICE

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Be at least 18 years of age.
* Have a documented primary diagnosis of chronic (\>2 years) or recurrent (2 or more prior episodes) major depressive episode that has not adequately responded to an adequate number of antidepressant treatments, as per local medical standards. This diagnosis must be confirmed using the MINI.
* Provide written Ethics Committee (EC) or Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved informed consent and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA, US only) authorization (as applicable according to local requirements).
* Currently is receiving at least one antidepressant treatment (i.e., antidepressant drug, maintenance electroconvulsive therapy, or formal psychotherapy including supportive psychotherapy) or mood stabilizing treatment for bipolar patients (such as lithium, anticonvulsants, or atypical antipsychotics).
* Able and willing to comply with the frequency of (outpatient) clinic visits and to reliably complete all the evaluations as specified in the study protocol.Hence based on the nature of their disease, the following patients should not be included: patients with mental retardation, current severe or significant substance/alcohol abuse, diagnosis of one or more schizophrenia-spectrum or other psychotic disorders, diagnosis of borderline or severe personality disorder as determined by clinical judgment which, in the investigator's opinion, would significantly interfere with subject's participation in the study)
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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LivaNova

INDUSTRY

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Responsibility Role SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

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Koen Demyttenaere, Prof.

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

KU Leuven

Allan Young, Prof.

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

King's College

Locations

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AKH Allgemeines Krankenhaus der Stadt Wien

Vienna, , Austria

Site Status RECRUITING

KU Leuven

Leuven, , Belgium

Site Status RECRUITING

Sozialstiftung Bamberg - Klinikum am Bruderwald

Bamberg, , Germany

Site Status WITHDRAWN

Universitätsklinikum Bonn

Bonn, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Universitätsklinikum Köln

Cologne, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

LVR-Hospital Essen

Essen, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt

Frankfurt, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Universitätsklinikum Freiburg

Freiburg im Breisgau, , Germany

Site Status COMPLETED

Universitätsmedizin Göttingen

Göttingen, , Germany

Site Status WITHDRAWN

Medizinische Hochschule Hannover

Hanover, , Germany

Site Status WITHDRAWN

Universitätsklinikum Jena

Jena, , Germany

Site Status COMPLETED

Universitätsklinik Leipzig

Leipzig, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

University Hospital Münster

Münster, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Klinikum Wilhelmshaven

Wilhelmshaven, , Germany

Site Status ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING

Glenfield hospital

Leicester, , United Kingdom

Site Status RECRUITING

King's College London

London, , United Kingdom

Site Status RECRUITING

Academic Psychiatry Wolfson Research Centre

Newcastle upon Tyne, , United Kingdom

Site Status RECRUITING

Mendip HTT / St Andrew's Ward

Wells, , United Kingdom

Site Status ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING

Countries

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Austria Belgium Germany United Kingdom

Central Contacts

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Sophie Achten

Role: CONTACT

+32 498 765 228

Shannon Majewski

Role: CONTACT

Facility Contacts

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Christoph Kraus, Dr.

Role: primary

Koen Demyttenaere, Prof.

Role: primary

Margaretha Klein, MD

Role: primary

Fritz-Georg Lehnhardt

Role: primary

Norbert Scherbaum, Prof.

Role: primary

Christine Reif-Leonhard

Role: primary

Maria Strauss, MD

Role: primary

Bernhard Baune, Prof.

Role: primary

Ganesh Kunjithapatham, Dr.

Role: primary

Allan Young, Prof.

Role: primary

Hamish McAllister-Williams, Prof.

Role: primary

References

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Kavakbasi E, Kraus C, Reif-Leonhard C, Blackwell JM, Dibue M, Treiber M, Achten S, Baune BT. Titration of vagus nerve stimulation for difficult-to-treat depression and onset of response: Early insights from the RESTORE-LIFE study. J Affect Disord. 2025 Jun 1;378:39-46. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2025.02.047. Epub 2025 Feb 26.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 40021060 (View on PubMed)

Kavakbasi E, Baune BT. Combination of Acute and Maintenance Esketamine Treatment With Adjunctive Long-Term Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Difficult-to-Treat Depression. Neuromodulation. 2024 Jun;27(4):766-773. doi: 10.1016/j.neurom.2023.12.004. Epub 2024 Feb 10.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 38340111 (View on PubMed)

Kavakbasi E, Rosemann K, Yilmaz M, Vasileiadou A, Falcone V, Baune BT. Vagus Nerve Stimulation Combined With Alternating Synchronized and Nonsynchronized Intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation in Difficult-to-Treat Depression. J ECT. 2024 Mar 1;40(1):62-63. doi: 10.1097/YCT.0000000000000964. Epub 2023 Dec 28. No abstract available.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 38194603 (View on PubMed)

Young AH, Juruena MF, De Zwaef R, Demyttenaere K. Vagus nerve stimulation as adjunctive therapy in patients with difficult-to-treat depression (RESTORE-LIFE): study protocol design and rationale of a real-world post-market study. BMC Psychiatry. 2020 Sep 29;20(1):471. doi: 10.1186/s12888-020-02869-6.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 32993573 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

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LNN800

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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