The role of intranasal oxytocin in anxiety and depressive disorders: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials

Abstract

Several studies have demonstrated the neuromodulating function of oxytocin (OT) in response to anxiogenic stimuli as well as its potential role in the pathogenesis of depression. Consequently, intranasal OT (IN-OT) has been proposed as a potential treatment of anxiety and depressive disorders. The present systematic review aimed to summarize the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the effect of IN-OT on anxiety and depressive symptoms. Overall, 15 studies were included, involving patients with social anxiety disorders (7 studies), arachnophobia (1), major depression (3) or post-natal depression (4), and mainly evaluating single-dose administrations of IN-OT. Results showed no significant effects on core symptomatology. Five crossover studies included functional magnetic resonance imaging investigation: one trial showed reduced amygdala hyper-reactivity after IN-OT in subjects with anxiety, while another one showed enhanced connectivity between amygdala and bilateral insula and middle cingulate gyrus after IN-OT in patients but not in healthy controls. More studies are needed to confirm these results. In conclusion, up to date, evidence regarding the potential utility of IN-OT in treating anxiety and depression is still inconclusive. Further RCTs with larger samples and long-term administration of IN-OT are needed to better elucidate its potential efficacy alone or in association with standard care.

Oxytocin and postpartum depression: A systematic review

“…More research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms of this relationship and if OT reduces depressive symptoms or if OT concentrations are the result of depression. The nuance of the relationship is especially of interest as OT is investigated as a treatment modality in PPD (De Cagna et al, 2019).…”

“…The following exclusion criteria were applied: abstracts without full peer reviewed publication, theoretical articles, review or meta-analysis articles, exclusively prenatal studies, depressive measurements outside one year postpartum, case studies, those exploring OXTR genotype as the sole oxytocin variable. Post-hoc exclusion criteria included those studies that focused on intranasal OT as a treatment for PPD (n=4) as a full review was recently published on this topic (De Cagna et al, 2019).…”

Effects of Dog-Based Animal-Assisted Interventions in Prison Population: A Systematic Review

“…Moreover, oxytocin levels seemed to increase [ 20 ]. This is relevant, since oxytocin is a peptide hormone and neuropeptide, released by the posterior pituitary, with antidepressant and calming effects [ 27 ]. This could be the reason why the AAI can reduce anxiety, depression [ 28 ], blood pressure [ 29 ], or cortisol [ 30 ], as well as increase wellbeing.…”

Lavender Oil Reduces Depressive Mood in Healthy Individuals and Enhances the Activity of Single Oxytocin Neurons of the Hypothalamus Isolated from Mice: A Preliminary Study

“…PVN is the central area regulating the response to stress, and OXT neurons in the PVN regulate various stress-induced behaviours as well as CRF [ 33 ]. OXT has been reported to have antidepressant activity in animals and humans [ 34 – 36 ]. The mRNA expression of OXT in the PVN has been reported to decrease in rats receiving continuous restraint stress during gestation, which is a postpartum depression model.…”