Depression affects millions of adults in the U.S., and for many, treatment with medication or therapy helps. But for about one-third of people with major depression, standard treatments don’t work.
These individuals have what is called treatment-resistant depression. They often live with severe symptoms for many years, trying one treatment after another with little or no success.
Now, researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis may have found a way to help people with the most serious cases.
A recent study from the ongoing RECOVER trial shows that a small device implanted in the body can provide lasting relief. The device works by sending gentle electrical signals to the vagus nerve, a key pathway between the brain and the body.
Most of the patients in the study had tried an average of 13 different treatments without success, including methods like electroconvulsive therapy and transcranial magnetic stimulation. Many had suffered from depression for nearly 30 years.
This study, published in the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, suggests that vagus nerve stimulation, or VNS, may finally offer hope.
The device is implanted under the skin in the chest and sends signals to the left vagus nerve, helping regulate mood. It’s called the VNS Therapy System and is made by LivaNova U.S., Inc. For many people, this device could improve symptoms, daily function, and quality of life—especially if standard treatments have failed.
The study enrolled almost 500 people from 84 sites across the U.S. About 75% of them were so ill they couldn’t work. Each person had the device implanted, but to compare results, only half of the devices were turned on for the first year.
To track the impact of the treatment, researchers looked at how severe the depression symptoms were before and after using the device. They also looked at quality of life and the ability to carry out daily tasks.
If a person showed at least a 30% drop in symptoms, the benefit was considered meaningful. A 50% or greater drop in symptoms was seen as a major success.
At the one-year mark, about 69% of people who had the active device showed a meaningful improvement. Among those who improved, more than 80% kept or increased their progress after two years. Of those who showed major improvement after one year, 92% were still doing well two years later.
Even more encouraging, about one-third of people who didn’t improve during the first year showed signs of benefit in the second year. That means for some, the treatment just takes more time to work. And more than 20% of all patients were in remission after two years, meaning they had few or no symptoms and could function normally in daily life.
Dr. Charles Conway, the lead researcher, said he was surprised and excited by the results. Seeing that one in five patients was nearly free of depression after two years was remarkable, especially in a group that had been so sick for so long.
The findings from this study are important because they show that VNS is not just a short-term fix. It helps people get better—and stay better. That kind of long-term success is rare in studies of severe depression.
The hope is that these results will help convince health insurance programs, including Medicare, to cover the cost of the device and surgery, making it available to more people.
In summary, the study shows that for people with the toughest cases of depression, a small implant might make a big difference. It offers not just relief, but the chance to regain daily life and feel hope again.
If you care about mental health, please read studies about 6 foods you can eat to improve mental health, and B vitamins could help prevent depression and anxiety.
For more health information, please see recent studies about how dairy foods may influence depression risk, and results showing Omega-3 fats may help reduce depression.
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