International clinical psychopharmacology
May 1, 2025
Vincenzo Cardaci, Matteo Carminati, Mattia Tondello et al.
7 citations
Postpartum depression is increasingly recognized as distinct from major depressive disorder, with unique causal factors including hormone fluctuations (estrogen, progesterone, allopregnolone), pathway imbalances (oxytocin, kynurenine), chronobiological factors, and brain imaging alterations. Treatment approaches are expanding beyond traditional antidepressants like sertraline to include newly approved neurosteroids brexanolone and zuranolone, with others under development. Esketamine, psychedelics, brain stimulation, and light therapy also show benefit. Individualized pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies are being introduced into routine clinical practice.
Journal of psychiatric practice
September 1, 2025
Matteo Carminati, Mattia Tondello, Barbara Barbini et al.
2 citations
In a case series of five patients with treatment-resistant depression who received both intravenous ketamine and later intranasal esketamine, four responded to ketamine but only one responded to esketamine. A better response to ketamine did not predict a good response to esketamine; the one patient who did not respond to ketamine showed a good response to esketamine. All patients had significant reductions in depressive symptoms after both treatments, but none achieved remission. The findings suggest both treatments reduce symptoms, with a generally better response to ketamine, possibly due to the R-ketamine component or the inpatient versus outpatient setting.
Journal of clinical psychopharmacology
May 1, 2026
Matteo Carminati, Mattia Tondello, Chiara Morana et al.
In a small retrospective study of 16 patients with treatment-resistant depression treated with intranasal esketamine, those who responded to treatment after 7 months had higher baseline neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratios (NLR) than non-responders (1.81 vs. 1.23). The difference remained significant after adjusting for age. The findings suggest that a patient's inflammatory status before treatment may influence their response to esketamine, but the small sample and retrospective design limit confidence. Larger prospective studies are needed to clarify whether inflammatory markers can predict esketamine response.