New research shows that antidepressants may reduce negative memories and improve memory function in patients with depression. The study highlights unknowns about how antidepressants work and how their effectiveness is often limited. The study included 48 participants receiving antidepressants, along with ongoing research investigating the brain’s response to these drugs, as well as the cognitive effects of these drugs. The need for further research is highlighted.
A new study from Rice University found that antidepressants may actually reduce negative memories and improve overall memory function in individuals suffering from depression.
This study was recently published in the journal Frontiers of human neuroscience. This study investigates how the use of antidepressants in patients with depression affects both good and bad memories.
Insights from the Principal Investigator
Stephanie Leal, assistant professor of psychological sciences at Rice University, is the study’s lead author. He said the study’s main findings on the link between antidepressants and memory were important because there was still much to learn about how antidepressants worked.
“Antidepressants have been around since the 1950s, but we still don’t really understand how they work,” Leal says. “They only work about 50% of the time, and users often have to take multiple types of antidepressants before they actually feel that the drug is working.” It’s not fully understood how it reduces symptoms of depression or why it’s often ineffective. That’s a big problem.”
Need for further research
The findings suggest that antidepressants, if effective, can shift memory toward healthy functioning, Leal said.
“How antidepressants affect cognition is an understudied area of research,” she says. “By measuring how antidepressants affect memory, we can use this information to better select treatments depending on people’s symptoms of depression.”
The study included 48 participants between the ages of 18 and 35. All individuals were surveyed and were actively taking antidepressants for at least 1 month before participating in the study (regardless of antidepressant type or diagnosis). Follow-up studies are currently being conducted to examine how the brain responds to antidepressants.
References: Taylor O. Phillips, Madeline Castro, Rishi K. Vasu Lorena, A. Ferguson, Amrita Harikumar, and Stephanie L. Leal, “Reducing Discrimination of Negative Mnemonics and Discrimination of Neutral Mnemonics.” “Cognitive effects of antidepressants associated with the enhancement of Frontiers of human neuroscience.
DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1225836
