Science Daily: AI to predict antidepressant outcomes in youth

"Mayo Clinic researchers have taken the first step in using artificial intelligence (AI) to predict early outcomes with antidepressants in children and adolescents with major depressive disorder, in a study published in The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. This work resulted from a collaborative effort between the departments of Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, and Psychiatry and Psychology, at Mayo Clinic, with support from Mayo Clinic's Center for Individualized Medicine.

"This preliminary work suggests that AI has promise for assisting clinical decisions by informing physicians on the selection, use and dosing of antidepressants for children and adolescents with major depressive disorder," says Paul Croarkin, D.O., a Mayo Clinic psychiatrist and senior author of the study. "We saw improved predictions of treatment outcomes in samples of children and adolescents across two classes of antidepressants."

These outcomes show the potential of AI and patient data to ensure children and adolescents receive treatment that has the highest likelihood of delivering therapeutic benefits with minimized side effects, explains Arjun Athreya, Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic researcher and lead author of the study.

Next steps

The research findings are a foundation for future work incorporating physiological information, brain-based measures and pharmacogenomic data for precision medicine approaches in treating youth with depression. This will improve the care of young patients with depression, and help clinicians initiate and dose antidepressants in patients who benefit most.

"Technological advances are understudied tools that could enhance treatment approaches," says Liewei Wang, M.D., Ph.D., the Bernard and Edith Waterman Director of the Pharmacogenomics Program and Director of the Center for Individualized Medicine at the Mayo Clinic. "Predicting outcomes in children and adolescents treated for depression is critical in managing what could become a lifelong disease burden.""

*This research caught my eye because our medicine is shifting towards a more personalized approach and AI has so much potential for personalized medicine. I think this research is important because we are still learning how to best approach medications in psychiatry and a lot of the time, it takes a few medications before a patient finds the right one for them. If we can have AI help detect the right medication and dosage ahead of time, we may save so much time and struggling with depression!*

How do you feel about the use of AI in helping to find the right medication for patients struggling with major depression? Do you think this is something you would partake in if given the chance?

#ArtificialIntelligence #MajorDepression #Antidepressants

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