Effect of exercise on therapeutic response in the treatment of depression

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of exercise on therapeutic response in depression treatment. During the study period, 33 patients, who were consulted to Psychiatry Department of Fırat University Hospital and were diagnosed with the Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) according to the Scheduled Clinical Interview Scale (SCID-I) for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders and met the study criteria, were included. The patients in group 1 were given walking exercise for 12 weeks, at least 4 days a week and at least 30 minutes per day with antidepressant medication. However only antidepressant medication was given to patients in group 2. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HARS), Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI) were applied to both groups three times. In this study, we determined that there was a decrease in anxiety and depressive symptom levels in both groups. Decrease in depression scores with antidepressant use is an expected outcome, but with exercise addition, this decline has occurred at a higher level than only antidepressant receiving group. According to the Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI), reduction in disease severity and healing were observed in both groups. In the group with antidepressant plus exercise, there was a statistically more decrease in scale point averages than the antidepressant group. In addition to this, no side effects were seen in both groups according to the CGI tolerability subscale. As a result, we found that exercise addition to medication might have positive effects on the therapeutic response in depression treatment. In order to achieve more reliable results, it is necessary to plan and implement long-term studies in larger sample groups. Key words: Depression, exercise, therapeutic response