Can Brain Scans Pick Depression Treatment?

A small study suggests that a brain scan may give clues to people’s likely response to depression treatment. The study included 62 people with major depression. All were given positron emission tomography (PET) scans to show activity in different areas of the brain. Then people were randomly assigned to treatments. Half received cognitive behavioral therapy, a type of talk therapy. The others were given the medicine escitalopram. Treatment lasted 12 weeks. Only 38 people had a clear response to treatment and clear PET scan results. In the psychotherapy group, 12 people got better and 9 did not. On their PET scans, those who did well had shown less activity in an area of the brain called the insula than those who did not improve. The insula is involved with emotion and self-awareness. Among those taking medicine, 11 got better and 6 did not.