The impact of antidepressant treatment on brain-derived neurotrophic factor level: An evidence-based approach through systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: Antidepressant treatment alters brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels, but it is not well established whether BDNF can be used as a marker to prove the efficacy of antidepressant treatment. The present systematic review and meta-analysis aim at assessing the influence of antidepressant treatment on BDNF level and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) score, thereby to establish the rationale of utilizing BDNF as a predictive biomarker and HDRS score as an indicator for antidepressant treatment efficacy.

Materials And Methods: Search was conducted in PubMed, Science Direct, and Cochrane databases using the key words "BDNF" and "Depression" and "Antidepressants.