Whole-body Hyperthermia for Moderate to Severe Depressive Disorder

NCT ID: NCT03906149

Last Updated: 2023-11-22

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

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

46 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2019-07-01

Study Completion Date

2023-01-20

Brief Summary

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The primary aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of whole-body hyperthermia in addition to standard medical care in comparison to standard medical care alone on depressive symptom severity in patients with moderate to severe depressive disorder.

Secondary aims included further quality of life outcomes, immunological parameters, and tolerability/safety of the hyperthermia.

Detailed Description

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Conditions

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Depression, Unipolar

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

DOUBLE

Investigators Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

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Whole-body hyperthermia + standard medical care

Whole-body hyperthermia will be applied 2 times during 4 weeks in addition to guideline-based standard medical care for depression (anti-depressive drug treatment in combination with psychotherapy). At week 6, the primary outcome will be assessed. The participants will be reassessed 12 weeks after the start of the treatment with whole-body hyperthermia.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Whole-body hyperthermia + standard medical care

Intervention Type COMBINATION_PRODUCT

Whole-body hyperthermia will be applied two times during 4 weeks (week 0 and 2 after randomization) in addition to standard medical care. The hyperthermia will be applied using Heckel-HT3000 MPIIb. During the 6 weeks of primary observation, the current medication should be maintained. The dose may be optimized with respect to clinical effectiveness and the reduction of side effects. The type of medication should not be changed during the 6 weeks. The use of additional somatic therapies such as sleep deprivation, light therapy, electroconvulsive therapy, or transcranial magnetic stimulation is not allowed.

Standard medical care

Participants will maintain standard medical care for depression (anti-depressive drug treatment in combination with psychotherapy). At week 6, the primary outcome will be assessed. The participants will be reassessed 12 weeks after randomization.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Standard medical care

Intervention Type COMBINATION_PRODUCT

Standard medical care included guideline-based anti-depressive drug treatment in combination with psychotherapy. During the 6 weeks of primary observation, the current medication should be maintained. The dose may be optimized with respect to clinical effectiveness and the reduction of side effects. The type of medication should not be changed during the 6 weeks. The use of additional somatic therapies such as sleep deprivation, light therapy, electroconvulsive therapy, or transcranial magnetic stimulation is not allowed.

Interventions

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Whole-body hyperthermia + standard medical care

Whole-body hyperthermia will be applied two times during 4 weeks (week 0 and 2 after randomization) in addition to standard medical care. The hyperthermia will be applied using Heckel-HT3000 MPIIb. During the 6 weeks of primary observation, the current medication should be maintained. The dose may be optimized with respect to clinical effectiveness and the reduction of side effects. The type of medication should not be changed during the 6 weeks. The use of additional somatic therapies such as sleep deprivation, light therapy, electroconvulsive therapy, or transcranial magnetic stimulation is not allowed.

Intervention Type COMBINATION_PRODUCT

Standard medical care

Standard medical care included guideline-based anti-depressive drug treatment in combination with psychotherapy. During the 6 weeks of primary observation, the current medication should be maintained. The dose may be optimized with respect to clinical effectiveness and the reduction of side effects. The type of medication should not be changed during the 6 weeks. The use of additional somatic therapies such as sleep deprivation, light therapy, electroconvulsive therapy, or transcranial magnetic stimulation is not allowed.

Intervention Type COMBINATION_PRODUCT

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Unipolar depression (diagnosed according to the DSM-IV)
* Moderate depression: 17-23 points on the HAMD-17 or severe depression: ≥24 points on the HAMD-17

Exclusion Criteria

* Participants who did not respond to prior antidepressant drug treatment, electroconvulsive therapy, or sleep deprivation (therapy-resistant depression)
* Acute suicidality
* Prior treatment with whole-body hyperthermia
* Contraindications to hyperthermia treatment: acute or feverish infections, severe cardiovascular diseases (e.g. angina pectoris, heart failure, thrombosis, bleeding diathesis), severe gastrointestinal diseases (e.g. renal insufficiency, hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, peptic ulcer), severe neurological diseases (e.g. epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, cerebrovascular malformations or brain tumors), severe endocrine diseases (e.g. hyperthyroidism), or oncological diseases without remission
* Participants taking anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive drugs
* Participants with severe psychiatric comorbidities (e.g. schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, dementia, ADHD, obsessive-compulsive disorder, PTSD, alcohol or drug addiction)
* Women during pregnancy and breastfeeding
* Lack of ability to consent
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

65 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Universität Duisburg-Essen

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Holger Cramer

Research Director

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Gustav Dobos, Prof. MD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Center for Integrative Medicine and Health, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen

Locations

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Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Addiciton Medicine, Evang. Kliniken Essen-Mitte

Essen, , Germany

Site Status

Countries

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Germany

Other Identifiers

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18-8440-BO

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id