Galantamine Augmentation of Escitalopram for Treatment of Depression

HYPOTHESES/OBJECTIVES Aim 1: To investigate whether patients treated with escitalopram in combination with galantamine will show a significantly greater improvement of depression compared to patients treated with escitalopram alone. H1: Patients treated with escitalopram and galantamine combination will have significantly greater improvement on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) and Clinical Global Improvement (CGI) scale compared to patients treated with escitalopram and placebo. Aim 2: To investigate whether treatment with escitalopram in combination with galantamine will lead to a greater improvement of cognitive function in depressed patients compared to escitalopram alone. H2: Patients treated with escitalopram and galantamine combination will have significantly greater improvement of scores on Selective Reminding Test (SRT) and Trail Making Test (TMT) than patients treated with escitalopram and placebo. Study Design and Method: This will be a randomized, single blind, parallel-group, placebo controlled study in which a total of 20 subjects, 10 in each arm: one arm would be escitalopram + galantamine treatment and the other arm will be escitalopram + placebo treatment. The subject will be blinded against the galantamine or placebo, but will be unblinded against escitalopram. The total duration of this study will be 10 weeks. After the baseline visit, patients will complete 8 weeks of the study medication.