Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses in the world. Millions of people live with persistent sadness, low energy, sleep problems and loss of interest in daily life.
For many, antidepressants are the first treatment offered and these medications are widely used and help many people.
However, a large number of patients try one drug after another and do not feel any significant improvement in their condition. Until now, doctors haven’t fully understood why this happens so often.
A major new study from the University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Center offers an important explanation to this question.
The research suggests that depression is not a single disease, but a group of different conditions that may require different treatments. The research focused on identifying a specific type of depression that does not respond well to standard antidepressants. This finding could change the way depression is treated in the future.
The research team studied data from almost 15,000 Australians who had experienced depression. This made it one of the largest studies of its kind.
The data came from the Australian genetics of depression study, which collects detailed information about symptoms, health history and genetics.
About three-quarters of participants were women, reflecting the fact that depression is more commonly diagnosed in women.
When researchers looked closely at the data, they found that about 21 percent of participants shared a pattern of symptoms that clearly stood out from the rest. This group was found to be suffering from what researchers call “atypical depression.”
People in this group showed symptoms other than what is commonly seen with depression. Instead of losing weight and sleeping less, many reported gaining weight and sleeping much more than normal during their worst bouts of depression.
They often felt heavy, tired and sluggish, both mentally and physically. These symptoms can have a profound impact on daily life, work and relationships.
Most importantly, this group did not respond well to common antidepressants such as SSRIs and SNRIs. These drugs work by changing the levels of certain brain chemicals.
For people with atypical depression, these medications were often ineffective and were more likely to cause side effects such as weight gain. This can make people feel worse instead of better, and may lead them to stop treatment altogether.
Lead researcher Dr. Mirim Shin explained that people in this group showed higher genetic risk related to metabolism, immunity, inflammation and sleep timing. This meant that their depression could follow a different biological path. If true, it helps explain why standard treatments often fail and why side effects of antidepressants are more common.
This research strongly supports providing personalized mental health care to patients, rather than using the same treatments for everyone. Doctors could one day choose therapies based on a person’s biology, symptoms and overall health.
This can reduce long periods of trial and error, reduce the risk of side effects and help people recover faster.
And while more research is needed, this study marks an important step toward more accurate diagnosis and better care for people with depression.
