Predictors of the Outcome of Late Life Depression

The relevance of depression prevention and treatment in older people tend to raise in future years, considering the rapid increase of the elderly population in Brazil and the growing impact of depression (the third cause of global burden of diseases in the world according to the World Health Association 2004 report). The association between structural brain changes and treatment response in patients with late-life depression (LLD) remains an intriguing area of research. Predictors of response to pharmacological treatment of major depressive disorder will be investigated in 120 elderly patients, who will be included in a naturalistic clinical trial, that will evaluate psychopathology, personality traits, cognitive performance, brain structural changes and genetic polymorphisms. Patients will be followed for 18 months with a treatment algorithm for depression and will be evaluated monthly until 6th month and every 3 months, up to 18 months, to assess factors associated to response to treatment. Patients who are in the antidepressant treatment group and does not reach remission (MADRS score \<or =8) until 3 months of pharmacological treatment will be invited to be part of a psychoeducation program. If the patient accepts the psychoeducation intervention, he will be randomized to psychoeducation (pharmacological treatment plus psychoeducation) or treatment as usual (only pharmacological treatment). The psychoeducation program consists of 10 individual weekly sessions, conducted by a trained psychologist who will explain the main concepts of depression and its symptoms, the importance of adhering to treatment, the main side effects of pharmacological treatment, and how to cope with daily difficulties.