Jiang PJ, Hu SW, Liao CM, Peng JJ, Liang SJ, Cheng X. Effects of phototherapy plus agomelatine on efficacy, negative emotions, and neurotransmitter levels in elderly patients with depressive disorders. World J Psychiatry 2026; 16(7): 117216 [DOI: 10.5498/wjp.117216]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Xue Cheng, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Psychiatry, Chongqing Mental Health Center, No. 102 Jinzi Mountain, Jiangbei District, Chongqing 401147, China. chengxue000331@126.com
Research Domain of This Article
Psychology
Article-Type of This Article
research-article
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Jiang PJ, Hu SW, Liao CM, Peng JJ, Liang SJ, Cheng X. Effects of phototherapy plus agomelatine on efficacy, negative emotions, and neurotransmitter levels in elderly patients with depressive disorders. World J Psychiatry 2026; 16(7): 117216 [DOI: 10.5498/wjp.117216]
Ping-Jing Jiang, Shu-Wei Hu, Chun-Mei Liao, Jing-Jing Peng, Sheng-Jian Liang, Xue Cheng, Department of Psychiatry, Chongqing Mental Health Center, Chongqing 401147, China
Author contributions: Jiang PJ, Hu SW, and Cheng X designed the study and were involved in the data acquisition and writing of this article; Liao CM, Peng JJ, and Liang SJ contributed to the analysis of the manuscript; and all authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Institutional review board statement: This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Chongqing Mental Health Center (No. 2024-011).
Informed consent statement: Patients were not required to give informed consent to the study because the analysis used anonymous clinical data that were obtained after each patient agreed to treatment by written consent.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items..
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Corresponding author: Xue Cheng, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Psychiatry, Chongqing Mental Health Center, No. 102 Jinzi Mountain, Jiangbei District, Chongqing 401147, China. chengxue000331@126.com
Received: January 23, 2026 Revised: March 2, 2026 Accepted: April 8, 2026 Published online: July 19, 2026 Processing time: 156 Days and 8.1 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Treatment outcomes in patients with depressive disorders remain suboptimal, necessitating exploration of improved therapeutic strategies.
AIM
To evaluate the effects of phototherapy plus agomelatine on treatment efficacy, negative emotions, and neurotransmitter levels in elderly patients with depressive disorders.
METHODS
From August 2024 to May 2025, 127 elderly patients with depressive disorder admitted to Chongqing Mental Health Center were enrolled and assigned to control (n = 60, agomelatine monotherapy) and research (n = 67, phototherapy plus agomelatine) groups. The two groups were compared regarding overall efficacy; Hamilton Anxiety Scale scores, Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) scores, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores; levels of dopamine (DA), norepinephrine, serotonin, superoxide dismutase, and malondialdehyde; and safety outcomes (nausea and vomiting, dry mouth, sweating, headache, and eye fatigue). The number needed to treat was calculated to assess the correlation between neurotransmitter changes and clinical improvement.
RESULTS
Compared with the control group (needed to treat: 8), the research group demonstrated a significantly higher total effective rate, lower post-treatment Hamilton Anxiety Scale, HAMD, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores, and malondialdehyde levels, and higher post-treatment DA, norepinephrine, serotonin, and superoxide dismutase levels. ΔDA showed a significant positive correlation with the reduction rate of HAMD scores. The overall incidence of adverse events was comparable between groups.
CONCLUSION
Phototherapy plus agomelatine demonstrates definite therapeutic efficacy in elderly patients with depressive disorders, effectively alleviating negative emotions and improving neurotransmitter parameters.
Core Tip: Drug therapy, psychotherapy, and combined drug-psychological therapy are available treatment options for elderly patients with depressive disorders; however, therapeutic efficacy remains suboptimal. This study evaluated phototherapy combined with agomelatine in elderly patients with depressive disorders. The findings indicate that the combined therapy demonstrated significant treatment efficacy, effectively alleviated anxiety and depression, improved sleep quality, regulated neurotransmitter levels, and suppressed oxidative stress, without increasing adverse side effects.
