Researchers found out in a recent test that RNA Markers drawn from sampled blood can tell doctors regarding their adult patient's depression.
Researchers from the Northwestern University performed a test on drawn blood from depression patients in order to verify the viability of using blood not only to detect depression, but also to gain a foresight on how the patient will respond to the most commonly effective treatments.
The test involved a total of 64 adults aged 21 to 79. 32 of the sampled pools were depressed while the remaining 32 were non-depressed.
The methodology of the study primarily involved drawing blood samples from each of the volunteers. The sampled blood from each volunteer was then examined in order to measure the concentration of RNA markers in the blood samples by isolating the RNA components in the blood. The levels of RNA markers between those with depression and those who were non-depressed were then compared. The comparison showed that there is a difference in RNA levels among depressed and non-depressed persons.
During an 18-week period, depressed volunteers received face-to-face and/or over the phone therapy. After the period, another blood test was performed to 22 of the depressed patients. This time, the researchers found out that the RNA marker levels among these sampled individuals has changed.
The results of the new test also show that those who recovered from their depression still showed differences in the RNA marker levels compared to those the levels from the non-depressed individuals.
The highlight of the results, however, is that the researchers found out that there are five specific RNA markers in the blood that will enable doctors to predict the level of effectiveness of psychotherapy to a patient.
Thus, this new blood test will not only detect depression and a person's predisposition to it, but it will also determine if psychotherapy is the best treatment to be rendered to an individual patient.
According to the CDC, about 9 percent of adults in America show symptoms of depression while 3 percent actually suffers severe depression. With these figures, the new blood test is seen by doctors as a highly potent way to combat the metal issue.