Speakers - PAWC2025

Abstract

Background and aims: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most common psychiatric disorders and are not only associated with a high risk of suicide and ischemic heart disease, but also closely linked with stress, immunity and inflammatory reactions. C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of systemic inflammation, has been suggested to correlate with treatment outcomes in depression. This study aimed to investigate whether baseline CRP levels are associated with and predictive of treatment response in patients with depressive symptoms.

Methods: This study selected 60 patients over the age of 19 who were diagnosed with MDD, based on DSM-5. CRP was measured prior to medication, and SSRI escitalopram was administered for 8 weeks. Depression scale assessments, 17item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression(HAMD-17) and Patient Health Questionnaire-9(PHQ-9), were performed before and after administration at the 8-week mark. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the predictive value of CRP for treatment response, adjusting for age and sex.

Results: A total of 38 people were analyzed(15 men and 23 women), with a mean age of 60.55±15.16 years. Both PHQ-9 and HAM-D showed statistically significant improvement after 8 weeks(p<0.05).
CRP was not significantly associated with treatment response in either PHQ-9 (OR = 2.13, p = 0.791) or HAM-D (OR = 0.006, p = 0.341).

Conclusions: Baseline CRP levels were not significantly associated with depressive symptom improvement and showed limited predictive utility for treatment response.

Further studies with larger samples and additional biomarkers are warranted.