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Comparison of Efficacy of Minocyclin and Celecoxib as Adjunctive Treatment in Treatment Resistant Cases of Major Depressive Disorder

Comparison of Efficacy of Minocyclin and Celecoxib as Adjunctive Treatment in Treatment Resistant Cases of Major Depressive Disorder; A Randomized Controlled Study

Status
Completed
Phases
Unknown
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT07804979
Enrollment
78
Registered
2026-09-04
Start date
2022-05-12
Completion date
2023-09-15
Last updated
2026-09-04

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Treatment-resistant Depression (TRD)

Keywords

Major Depressive Disorder, Treatment-Resistant Depression, Minocycline, Celecoxib, Fluoxetine, Adjunctive Drug Therapy

Brief summary

This randomized controlled study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of minocycline and celecoxib as add-on treatments in patients with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder. Treatment-resistant depression was defined as depression that had not adequately improved despite appropriate previous antidepressant treatment. A total of 78 patients aged 18-65 years were enrolled from the Psychiatry Department of Lahore General Hospital, Lahore, and were randomly assigned to two treatment groups. One group received minocycline 100 mg twice daily with fluoxetine 20-40 mg, while the other group received celecoxib 200 mg twice daily with fluoxetine 20-40 mg. Treatment was continued for 12 weeks. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) at baseline and during follow-up. The main outcome was the change in HAM-D score from baseline to the end of treatment. Treatment response was defined as a reduction of at least 50% in the HAM-D score, while remission was defined as a final HAM-D score of 7 or lower. The study was designed to test whether adding minocycline or celecoxib to fluoxetine would reduce depressive symptoms in treatment-resistant major depressive disorder and whether the degree of improvement differed between the two adjunctive treatments.

Interventions

DRUGMinocycline

Minocycline 100 mg orally twice daily was administered in addition to fluoxetine 20-40 mg/day for 12 weeks.

DRUGCelecoxib

Celecoxib 200 mg orally twice daily was administered in addition to fluoxetine 20-40 mg/day for 12 weeks.

Sponsors

Lahore General Hospital
Lead SponsorOTHER_GOV

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* Patients aged 18-65 years. * Patients of either gender. * Patients with a current diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder. * Voluntary outpatients who were competent to provide informed consent. * Patients with a baseline Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) score \>14. * Patients fulfilling the study definition of Treatment-Resistant Depression (TRD).

Exclusion criteria

* Patients with psychotic depression. * Patients already taking either of the trial drugs, based on the medical record. * Patients with substance use disorder or dependence within the previous 3 months. * Pregnant women, women planning to conceive within 3 months, or breastfeeding women. * Patients with another primary psychiatric disorder already receiving treatment. * Patients with a history of intolerance or allergy to minocycline or celecoxib. * Patients with active renal, hepatic, cardiac, or serious dermatological illness. * Patients receiving concomitant penicillin therapy or anticoagulants.

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Change in Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) ScoreBaseline and 12 weeksThe primary outcome was the mean change in Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) score from baseline to the end of treatment. HAM-D was used to assess the severity of depressive symptoms. The change in HAM-D score was calculated by comparing the baseline score with the score obtained after 12 weeks of adjunctive treatment. A greater reduction in HAM-D score indicated greater improvement in depressive symptoms.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Treatment Response Based on HAM-D ScoreBaseline to 12 weeksTreatment response was defined as a reduction of 50% or more in the HAM-D score from baseline during the 12-week treatment period. The proportion of participants achieving treatment response was assessed in each treatment group.

Countries

Pakistan

Contacts

PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORFarhana Ashraf

Lahore General Hospital, Lahore

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Sep 5, 2026