Resistance Exercise for Major Depression and Brain Blood Flow
Resistance Exercise to Treat Major Depression via Cerebrovascular Mechanisms: Confirming Efficacy and Informing Precision Medicine
This project explores if resistance exercise can help people with major depression by improving blood flow in the brain.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Wisconsin-Madison NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Madison, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11261418 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Many current treatments for major depression don't work well for everyone, so we need new options. Resistance exercise training, like lifting weights, has shown promise in early findings for reducing depression symptoms. This work aims to confirm if resistance exercise is truly effective and to understand how it might work by looking at changes in brain blood flow. We hope to identify who might benefit most from this type of exercise, paving the way for more personalized depression treatments.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates for future participation would be adults diagnosed with major depressive disorder who are interested in exploring exercise as a treatment.
Not a fit: Patients whose depression is well-managed by existing treatments or who have medical conditions preventing resistance exercise may not receive additional benefit from this specific approach.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could offer a new, effective treatment option for major depression, especially for those who haven't responded well to other therapies.
How similar studies have performed: Early, small studies have shown promising antidepressant effects of resistance exercise, providing a foundation for this larger investigation.
Where this research is happening
Madison, United States
- University of Wisconsin-Madison — Madison, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Meyer, Jacob D — University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Study coordinator: Meyer, Jacob D
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.