Psilocybin-Assisted Supportive Psychotherapy in the Treatment of Major Depression

Peter ForsterTreatments of Depression Leave a Comment

We have been eagerly awaiting the results of controlled studies of psilocybin treatment of depression (used along with psychotherapy). A large multi-center study is still recruiting participants. Meanwhile a great deal of interest in this topic has been stirred up by Michael Pollan and his book How to Change Your Mind. But clinicians have had very little solid science upon …

Treatment Resistant Depression – More Clues to Predicting Response – VAST-D

Peter ForsterMajor Depression, Treatments of Depression Leave a Comment

Clues that can help us provide more effective care for those with treatment resistant depression are urgently needed. Sidney Zisook and colleagues report an analysis of the data from a large study of veterans with chronic depression (VAST-D) and conclude that two clinical features can help predict likely response to medications changes for some patients who have failed at least …

TMS Effectiveness Updated

Peter ForsterBest Practices, Major Depression, Treatments of Depression

[Published February 13, 2017 | Updated May 18, 2026] Research on the effectiveness of TMS for depression continues to evolve. As additional TMS devices and treatment protocols have been developed, researchers have examined whether newer approaches may offer advantages over the original forms of treatment. Questions have also been raised about whether terms such as “deep TMS,” “accelerated TMS,” and …

Buprenorphine for Depression – A Combination Approach

Peter ForsterMajor Depression, Treatments of Depression

While we were in the midst of a seeming epidemic of concern about opiate prescribing and possible overuse of opiates by physicians, it is ironic that we are also seeing a small stream of articles being published about the potential effectiveness of opiate agonists in treating patients with treatment resistant depression. I’ve been interested in this topic since Enoch Callaway, …

TMS Cost Effectiveness

Peter ForsterCosts of Treatment, Treatments of Depression

“Is TMS Cost-Effective?” His provocative title of an article just published in psychiatric times which summarizes an Australian pharmaco-economic study. In case you don’t want to read through the rest of this article, here is the summary: “Australian researchers compared the cost-effectiveness of rTMS with pharmacotherapy in treatment-resistant patients with MDD (ie, those who have failed at least 2 courses …

Aripiprazole for Late Life Depression

Peter ForsterMajor Depression, Treatments of Depression

A study suggests that aripiprazole augmentation may be an effective strategy for treating major depression in older adults. The article has generated a lot of interest because of evidence suggesting that late life major depression may be different from major depression in early adulthood. Cognitive impairment, including memory troubles and trouble with planning and decision making (executive function), seems to …