New blood test ‘opens door for personalised depression treatment’

People with depression could receive tailored treatment strategies thanks to a new blood test developed by King's College London.

The test has been shown to accurately and reliably predict whether depressed patients will respond to common antidepressants, potentially allowing these individuals to skip straight to more intensive treatment approaches.

Building on previous studies showing that that elevated levels of inflammation are associated with poor response to antidepressants, the test works by measuring quantities of two inflammatory biomarkers, MIF and IL-1 beta.

It was shown that patients with levels of these biomarkers that were above certain thresholds showed a 100 per cent chance of not responding to conventional, commonly prescribed antidepressants.

If the effectiveness of the test can be ascertained through further studies, it will be possible to help people with depression find a treatment that works for them more efficiently.

Senior author Professor Carmine Pariante, from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King's College London, said: "The identification of biomarkers that predict treatment response is crucial in reducing the social and economic burden of depression, and improving quality of life of patients."