Overview
- Pooled evidence from 11 randomized controlled trials examined 321 depressed participants selected for elevated inflammation, often using a CRP ≥2 mg/L cutoff.
- Anti-inflammatory treatments produced significant reductions in overall depressive symptoms (Hedges’ g ≈ 0.35) and in anhedonia (Hedges’ g ≈ 0.40).
- Targeting only patients with measurable inflammation helps explain prior mixed trial results that did not stratify by inflammatory status.
- No significant differences in response or remission rates versus placebo were detected in the aggregated data.
- The Mass General Brigham team urges development of immune biomarkers to identify likely responders and safer, targeted interventions; the study appears in the American Journal of Psychiatry.