Right putaminal gray matter change tracks psychomotor recovery after accelerated iTBS in melancholic treatment-resistant depression.
Deng Mao, Guo-Rong Wu, Beatriz Araújo Cavendish et al.
✦ AI-curated · Sources linked
In 30 seconds
This randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled study examined striatal gray matter volume (GMV) in patients with melancholic treatment-resistant depression (TRD) and its relationship to symptom change after accelerated intermittent theta-burst stimulation (aiTBS). At baseline, 61 patients had greater right putamen GMV than 77 healthy controls. Among 50 patients with complete pre- and post-treatment data, greater right putamen GMV increase after active aiTBS was associated with greater improvement in psychomotor retardation. This association was not seen after sham stimulation or for overall depression severity. The authors caution that the change should not be interpreted as structural normalization.
Key findings
- At baseline, patients with melancholic TRD showed greater right putamen GMV than healthy controls.
- In the active aiTBS group, greater right putamen GMV increase was associated with greater psychomotor retardation improvement.
- The association was absent after sham stimulation and was not observed for overall depression severity.
Why it matters
The findings link short-term structural change in the right putamen with psychomotor recovery, rather than broader depressive symptom improvement, after active aiTBS. This may help clarify neural correlates of early treatment response in melancholic TRD, while underscoring that an imaging change associated with symptom improvement does not establish structural normalization or a causal mechanism.
What to keep in mind
The association analysis included 50 patients with complete pre- and post-treatment data, and the reported relationship does not establish that putaminal change causes psychomotor improvement.