ADAPT: Addressing Depression and Pain Together

Summary

The primary question addressed by this study is: Using a stepped care approach in primary care, what is the value of the combination of an antidepressant medication (Venlafaxine) and psychotherapy for seniors living with depression and chronic lower back pain when treatment with a low-dose of venlafaxine and supportive management (SM) has led to only a partial or non-response?

Timeline

Start

2010-05

Primary completion

2016-02

Completion

2016-02

Publications

• Background Karp JF, Weiner DK, Dew MA, Begley A, Miller MD, Reynolds CF 3rd. Duloxetine and care management treatment of older adults with comorbid major depressive disorder and chronic low back pain: results of an open-label pilot study. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2010 Jun;25(6):633-42. doi: 10.1002/gps.2386.
• Background Karp JF, Skidmore E, Lotz M, Lenze E, Dew MA, Reynolds CF 3rd. Use of the late-life function and disability instrument to assess disability in major depression. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2009 Sep;57(9):1612-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1532-5415.2009.02398.x. Epub 2009 Jul 21.
• Background Karp JF, Reynolds CF 3rd, Butters MA, Dew MA, Mazumdar S, Begley AE, Lenze E, Weiner DK. The relationship between pain and mental flexibility in older adult pain clinic patients. Pain Med. 2006 Sep-Oct;7(5):444-52. doi: 10.1111/j.1526-4637.2006.00212.x.
• Background Karp JF, Weiner D, Seligman K, Butters M, Miller M, Frank E, Stack J, Mulsant BH, Pollock B, Dew MA, Kupfer DJ, Reynolds CF 3rd. Body pain and treatment response in late-life depression. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2005 Mar;13(3):188-94. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajgp.13.3.188.
• Background Arean P, Hegel M, Vannoy S, Fan MY, Unuzter J. Effectiveness of problem-solving therapy for older, primary care patients with depression: results from the IMPACT project. Gerontologist. 2008 Jun;48(3):311-23. doi: 10.1093/geront/48.3.311.
• Background Karp JF, Shega JW, Morone NE, Weiner DK. Advances in understanding the mechanisms and management of persistent pain in older adults. Br J Anaesth. 2008 Jul;101(1):111-20. doi: 10.1093/bja/aen090. Epub 2008 May 16.
• Kronenbuerger M, Magarbeh L, Kloiber S, Tavakoli E, Gorbovskaya I, Tiwari A, Kennedy JL, Karp JF, Muller DJ, Elsheikh SSM. Pharmacogenetics of venlafaxine response in older adults with depression and chronic lower back pain. Pharmacogenomics. 2026 Mar-Apr;27(3-4):77-91. doi: 10.1080/14622416.2026.2669395. Epub 2026 May 8.
• Stahl ST, Jung C, Weiner DK, Pecina M, Karp JF. Opioid Exposure Negatively Affects Antidepressant Response to Venlafaxine in Older Adults with Chronic Low Back Pain and Depression. Pain Med. 2020 Aug 1;21(8):1538-1545. doi: 10.1093/pm/pnz279.
• Wei W, Karim HT, Lin C, Mizuno A, Andreescu C, Karp JF, Reynolds CF 3rd, Aizenstein HJ. Trajectories in Cerebral Blood Flow Following Antidepressant Treatment in Late-Life Depression: Support for the Vascular Depression Hypothesis. J Clin Psychiatry. 2018 Oct 23;79(6):18m12106. doi: 10.4088/JCP.18m12106.
• Rej S, Dew MA, Karp JF. Treating concurrent chronic low back pain and depression with low-dose venlafaxine: an initial identification of "easy-to-use" clinical predictors of early response. Pain Med. 2014 Jul;15(7):1154-62. doi: 10.1111/pme.12456. Epub 2014 Jul 4.

Drugs

Indications