DTI voxelwise analysis did not differentiate older depressed patients from older subjects without depression.

Introduction: Neuroimaging has been widely used in studies to investigate depression in the elderly because it is a noninvasive technique, and it allows the detection of structural and functional brain alterations. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) are neuroimaging indexes of the microstructural integrity of white matter, which are measured using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). The aim of this study was to investigate differences in FA or MD in the entire brain without a previously determined region of interest (ROI) between depressed and non-depressed elderly patients.

Validation of a treatment algorithm for major depression in an older Brazilian sample.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a modified version of the Duke Somatic Algorithm Treatment for Geriatric Depression (STAGED) in a Brazilian sample of older patients with major depression. Besides, we aimed to investigate possible baseline predictive factors for remission in this sample.

Methods: Sixty-seven depressed individuals were treated according to STAGED over 24 weeks in a prospective cohort design with follow-up.

Effect of temporal lobe structure volume on memory in elderly depressed patients.

Objective: To compare the volume of the hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus in elderly individuals with and without depressive disorders, and to determine whether the volumes of these regions correlate with scores on memory tests.

Method: Clinical and demographic differences, as well as differences in regional gray matter volumes, were assessed in 48 elderly patients with depressive disorders and 31 control subjects. Brain (structural MRI) scans were processed using statistical parametric mapping and voxel-based morphometry.

Influence of education and depressive symptoms on cognitive function in the elderly.

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence that education and depression have on the performance of elderly people in neuropsychological tests.

Methods: The study was conducted at the Institute of Psychiatry, University of São Paulo School of Medicine, Hospital das Clínicas. All of the individuals evaluated were aged 60 or older.