Abstract: AIM: To explore the effects of aripiprazole and duloxetine on refractory depression and the change of VEGF concentration during treatment.  METHODS: Ninety patients with refractory depression who were treated at the Fourth People's Hospital of Jiande from February 2017 to February 2019 were selected, and 40 healthy volunteers were recruited as healthy control groups. Random numbers table was used to divide patients into aripiprazole combined with duloxetine treatment group (combined treatment group) and duloxetine treatment group (monotherapy group). After 4 weeks of treatment, the differences in efficacy and adverse reactions between the two groups were evaluated. The difference of VEGF level between each group was compared. RESULTS: The effective rate was 88.8% in the combined treatment group and 80.0% in the monotherapy group. The effective rate between the two groups was not statistically significant (P<0.05). After 4 weeks of treatment, the HAMD score in the combined treatment group was lower than that in the monotherapy group, the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). The difference in adverse reactions between the two groups was not statistically significant (R=0.641, P=0.624). The level of VEGF before treatment in the two treatment groups was higher than that in the healthy control group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). After treatment, the VEGF level of the two groups decreased compared with before treatment, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.01). The level of VEGF in the combined treatment group was lower than that in the monotherapy group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Pearson correlation analysis showed that the level of VEGF before treatment was positively correlated with the HAMD score (R=0.403, P<0.01), and VEGF decline level is positively correlated with HAMD score reduction rate (R=0.330, P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Aripiprazole combined with duloxetine has a better effect on refractory depression than duloxetine alone, and can significantly reduce the level of VEGF in peripheral blood.

Key words: refractory depression, aripiprazole, duloxetine, vascular endothelial growth factor