The Role of Cytokine-Serotonin Interactions in Post-Stroke Depression
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2013-12-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Depression is a common and often serious problem occurring in stroke patients. Inflammatory
hormones, known as cytokines, are stimulated by an activated immune system and sometimes
become active following a stroke. They may be responsible for altering levels of key
neurotransmitters and their metabolites in the blood and brain of stroke patients. The
investigators' objective is to examine whether increased cytokine activity following a stroke
may be the cause of an increased presence or severity of depression or cognitive impairment
among stroke patients, as a result of tryptophan depletion and/or kynurenine activation. They
are recruiting patients within one month of their strokes and measuring levels of key markers
in their blood. Patients are assessed for the presence of depressive and/or cognitive
symptoms and treated with an antidepressant if needed. The investigators expect to show that
cytokine activation is related to depression and/or cognitive impairment among stroke
patients.