Trial reportNeurotoxicity research2018
Add-on Treatment with Curcumin Has Antidepressive Effects in Thai Patients with Major Depression: Results of a Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Study.
Trial report in Neurotoxicity research, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
31 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 64 citations in OpenAlex.
- Nutraceuticals and phytoceuticals for the treatment of major depressive disorder: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.Molecular psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of Polyphenol Supplementations on Improving Depression, Anxiety, and Quality of Life in Patients With Depression.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Pooled it
- The effect of curcumin on postpartum depression and anxiety in primiparous women: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2025Trial
- Selective Anti-Inflammatory Actions of Curcumin on Cytokine Pathways in Major Depressive Disorder.Brain and behavior · 2026Article
- Efficacy of curcumin in depression: A grade-assessed systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Annals of general psychiatry · 2026Review
- Medicinal Plants for Major Depressive Disorder.Brain sciences · 2026Review
- Effects of curcumin on depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms in adults: a GRADE-assessed systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis.Food & nutrition research · 2026Article
- Exploring the potential of polyphenols in major depression: from molecular function to clinical therapy.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Review
- Polyphenols: A top-down approach to nutrition and depression.World journal of psychiatry · 2025Review
- Association of Cognitive Impairment and Peripheral Inflammation in Methamphetamine-dependent Patients: A Cross-sectional Study on Neuroinflammatory Markers TNF-α and IL-6.Clinical psychopharmacology and neuroscience : the official scientific journal of the Korean College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2025Article
- Neuroinflammation and Natural Antidepressants: Balancing Fire with Flora.Biomedicines · 2025Review
- The Dynamic Role of Curcumin in Mitigating Human Illnesses: Recent Advances in Therapeutic Applications.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Is Curcumin Intake Really Effective for Chronic Inflammatory Metabolic Disease? A Review of Meta-Analyses of Randomized Controlled Trials.Nutrients · 2024Review
- Curcumin as a Multifunctional Spice Ingredient against Mental Disorders in Humans: Current Clinical Studies and Bioavailability Concerns.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- The effect of curcumax on postpartum women's depression: a randomized controlled trial.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Cool the Inflamed Brain: A Novel Anti-inflammatory Strategy for the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder.Current neuropharmacology · 2024Review
- Hesperidin reduces depressive symptoms in post-coronary artery bypass graft patients with mild depression.Food science & nutrition · 2023Article
- Curcumin: Overview of Extraction Methods, Health Benefits, and Encapsulation and Delivery Using Microemulsions and Nanoemulsions.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Role of Turmeric and Curcumin in Prevention and Treatment of Chronic Diseases: Lessons Learned from Clinical Trials.ACS pharmacology & translational science · 2023Review
- Phytochemicals That Act on Synaptic Plasticity as Potential Prophylaxis against Stress-Induced Depressive Disorder.Biomolecules & therapeutics · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Activation of immune-inflammatory and oxidative-nitrosative (IO&NS) stress pathways plays a role in major depression (MDD). Evidence suggests that curcumin (500-1000 mg/day), a polyphenol with strong anti-IO&NS properties, may have efficacy either as monotherapy or as an adjunctive treatment for depression. Further controlled trials with extended treatment periods (> 8 weeks) and higher curcumin doses are warranted. This 12-week study was carried out to examine the effects of adjunctive curcumin for the treatment of MDD. In this double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 65 participants with MDD were randomized to receive either adjunctive curcumin (increasing dose from 500 to 1500 mg/day) or placebo for 12 weeks. Four weeks after the active treatment phase, a follow-up visit was conducted at week 16. Assessments of the primary, i.e., the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), and secondary, i.e., the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A), outcome measures were rated at baseline and 2, 4, 8, 12, and 16 weeks later. Curcumin was more efficacious than placebo in improving MADRS scores with significant differences between curcumin and placebo emerging at weeks 12 and 16. The effects of curcumin were more pronounced in males compared to females. There were no statistically significant treatment-emerging adverse effects and no significant effects of curcumin on blood chemistry and ECG measurements. Adjunctive curcumin has significant antidepressant effects in participants with MDD as evidenced by significant benefits occurring 12 and 16 weeks after treatment initiation. Curcumin administration was safe and well-tolerated even when combined with antidepressants. Future trials should include treatment-by-sex interactions to examine putative antidepressant effects of immune-modifying compounds.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.