Introduction
MDD, depression, depressive, adolescence
PATHOPHYSIOLOGY
Antidepressants are widely used to treat depression in adolescents. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are known to be the most frequently prescribed antidepressantsThe literature suggests that neurobiological markers associated with the pathophysiology of depression can be targets for depression treatment.Previous studies have demonstrated that SSRI treatment is associated with structural and functional changes in the DLPFC, in adults with MDD. For example, after a 12-week SSRI treatment, adults with depression showed increases in the DLPFC gray matter volume, which, in turn, were associated with greater depressive symptom improvement.Despite such supportive findings, more research is needed to improve our understanding of the role of changes in DLPFC volume and activity as potential biomarkers for SSRI treatment. There are several reasons for further research. First, relatively little is known about neurobiological changes following SSRI treatment in adolescents with MDD. Given that adolescence is a developmental period with great importance of cognitive control and emotion regulation development and the protracted prefrontal development,Thus, we aimed to examine longitudinal DLPFC volume and rsFC changes associated with SSRI treatment in adolescents with MDD. Given the possibility of a bidirectional association between structural and functional alterations in depression,