The Clinical Department of Psychiatry, Social- and Psychological Therapy at Hannover Medical School is not only involved in patient care, but is also particularly dedicated to teaching and research. Numerous research groups develop new findings in basic and translational research and open up new application possibilities for modern psychiatric therapy. Today, this requires national and international networking.
Below is a selection of our current and past cooperation projects.
Current projects
P4D - (Personalized, Predictive, Precise & Preventive Medicine for Major Depression) is a multi-centre clinical cooperation project that will run for 60 months. Based on a complete deep phenotyping of a large MDD (Major Depressive Disorder) cohort, including blood-based and instrumental examinations, as well as clinical testing and validation of epigenetically guided antidepressant treatment, P4D aims to personalize the treatment of MDD in a precise, predictive and preventive manner in order to actively address the current hurdles of antidepressant treatment.
Project partners: University Hospitals in Kiel, Greifswald, Frankfurt and Würzburg, Frauenhofer ITEM, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Technische Universität Braunschweig, BioVariance GmbH, Stiftung Deutsche Depressionshilfe und Suizidprävention, Hannover Unified Biobank, Center for Clinical Trials Hannover,
Funding: German Aerospace Project Management Agency
The overall aim of the "Drug Safety in Psychiatry" project is to improve drug safety in the treatment of psychiatric patients. In a total of over 50 project clinics (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), "adverse drug reactions" (ADRs) involving psychotropic drugs are continuously recorded, currently mainly in the inpatient sector (non-interventional).
The aims are to detect, analyze and assess the causality of serious ADRs. In this way, incidences of ADRs and specific risk profiles of substance groups or individual substances can be determined and compared with each other.
Project partners: Participation of more than 50 project clinics (Germany, Austria, Switzerland); close cooperation with the University Medical Center Göttingen (Prof. Detlef Degner) and the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich (Prof. Dr. Dr. Grohmann).
Funding: Co-financing by Janssen-Cilag GmbH, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Europe Ltd, Recordati Pharma GmbH and non-profit associations (ÖAMSP, SGAMSP)
Change-PPD - Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) vs. Behavioral Activation (BA) in inpatients with persistent depressive and treatment-resistant disorders: Effectiveness, moderators and mediators of change
As part of a national multicenter clinical trial entitled "Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) vs. Behavioral Activation (BA) in inpatients with persistent depressive and treatment-resistant disorders: Effectiveness, moderators and mediators of change" (PI: Prof. Dr. Dr. Eva-Lotta Brakemeier, University of Greifswald), the MHH is participating in a clinical intervention study on the effectiveness of two psychotherapy methods for persistent depression. The study is funded with a total of over €1,700,000 and is investigating the effectiveness of these two psychotherapy methods as well as the moderators and mediators of any psychotherapy improvements.
Among other things, it is being investigated whether there will be a significant superiority in the CBASP group compared to the BA after 16 weeks of treatment. In addition, it will be investigated which intervention is most suitable for which patients and which factors determine therapeutic success. For example, moderator analyses will be used to investigate whether early traumatizing childhood experiences and the methylation of exon IV of the BDNF gene have an influence on the differential efficacy of the two treatments. Mediator analyses will be used to examine whether the symptom improvements can be explained by improvements in interpersonal problems in CBASP and an increase in activity levels in BA. A follow-up survey after 48 weeks will also provide valuable data on the sustainability of therapeutic improvements. Finally, the health economic potential of the interventions will be examined with the help of cost-benefit analyses in order to provide important information on the cost-effectiveness of implementation in routine care.
Project partners: University Medicine Greifswald in cooperation with a total of six other study centers (university hospitals in Berlin, Hanover, Lübeck, Marburg, Munich and Tübingen), as well as the KKS Greifswald and the University of Kassel
Funding: German Research Foundation (DFG)
For some years now, there has been increasing evidence that Tourette's syndrome can be successfully treated with cannabis or cannabis-based medication. At the beginning of 2018, a large multicenter study was launched in our Clinical Department to investigate the efficacy of the cannabis-based drug nabiximols (SATIVEX®) for the treatment of people with tic disorders or Tourette syndrome. SATIVEX® is an oral spray that has already been admitted in Germany for the treatment of spasticity in patients with multiple sclerosis. Recruitment has already been completed. Participation in the study is therefore no longer possible.
Project partners: Hannover Medical School, LMU Munich, University Hospital RWTH Aachen, University of Lübeck, University Hospital Freiburg, University Hospital Cologne, University Medical Center Mainz; with support from the Tourette Society Germany e.V. (TGD) and the Interssenverband Tourette-Syndrom (IVTS)
Funding: German Research Foundation (DFG: GZ MU 1527/3-1)
Joint project EViPan Unimed - Development, testing and implementation of regionally adaptive care structures and processes for evidence-based pandemic management coordinated by University Medicine
In order to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, considerable efforts were made in hospitals and throughout the healthcare sector to treat people suffering from COVID-19. The OnCoVID-2 project (part of EViPan Unimed; cross-site project coordination: Prof. Dr. Jörg Haier, Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC), MHH) uses questionnaires to shed light on the effects of the pandemic on participatory decision-making by those affected and those treating them. In the Clinical Department of Psychiatry, Social- and Psychological Therapy, the focus is on mental illnesses. The resulting data will be compared with an oncological cohort (CCC, MHH) and processed in such a way that it can be transferred to other clinical pictures.
Main project partner EViPan Unimed: see here
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) as part of the "National Research Network of University Medicine on COVID-19 (NUM)"
European research project to investigate the influence of biological, psychological and environmental factors during adolescence on brain development and mental health.
Funding: Initially launched by the European Commission; subsequently supported by various authorities (Medical Research Council (MRC), National Institute for Health Research UK (NIHR), Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet), German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), National Institute for Health Research US (NIHR) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)).
The future lab works on current research issues in artificial intelligence and develops intelligent solutions for the application area of personalized medicine.
Individual therapies, medicines tailored to the individual patient and more precise diagnoses - this is what personalized medicine is supposed to achieve. To achieve this, huge amounts of data need to be processed and analyzed. Research at the L3S Future Lab focuses on new approaches and algorithms for intelligent, reliable and responsible systems.
The Leibniz Future Lab aims to establish itself as one of the central points of contact in Germany for artificial intelligence and its application in the field of personalized medicine. Together with national and international partners, the Future Lab will therefore carry out a large number of cooperative research and innovation projects with scientists from Leibniz University and Hannover Medical School.
In the "Big Data in Psychiatric Disorders" project, Prof. Dr. Helge Frieling from the Clinical Department of Psychiatry, Social-psychiatry and Psychological Therapy (MHH) is working with the Leibniz AI Lab on schizophrenia and neurodegenerative diseases. In the first sub-project, genetic information from around 50,000 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia is being analyzed using artificial intelligence in order to identify possible subtypes. The hypothesis here is that schizophrenia as a phenotype is based on a wide variety of causes that require a differentiated diagnosis and therapy. In the second sub-project, age-related depression is being investigated as the first symptom of a neurodegenerative disease. The aim is to identify markers for specific neurogenerative diseases in patients with age-related depression. To this end, international cohorts of patients with Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal lobe degeneration will be examined for potential markers using genomic, epigenomic and imaging data. At the same time, there is a cohort on age-related depression with broad clinical data as well as exome and methylome data that can be categorized into subtypes based on identified potential markers. With the help of these predictive markers, an early therapeutic intervention in neurodegenerative diseases could be realized.
Leibniz AI Lab project partners: L3S Research Center Hannover, Hannover Medical School (incl. TWINCORE), Leibniz Universität Hannover, University of Technology Sydney & Swinburne University of Technology & Edith Cowan University (Australia), Nanyang Technological University & Advanced Digital Sciences Center (Singapore), Victoria University Wellington (New Zealand), Indian Institute of Technology (India), Stanford University (USA)
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
The research network'Neurobiological Foundations of Pedophilia and Sexual Abuse Behavior against Children' (NeMUP) investigates mechanisms that may underlie child sexual abuse on the one hand and pedophilic sexual preference on the other. We assume that these are at least partially different mechanisms for two different phenomena, because not every pedophile commits child sexual abuse and not every child abuse is motivated by pedophilia. Imaging, psychometric and physiological methods are used here. The special study design is intended to deepen the understanding of the distinction between sexual preference and sexual behavior during the three-year funding period. The results will be used to develop and improve therapy and prevention strategies.
The locations of the network represent a network of leading medical-psychological research and care facilities for both pedophile men and sex offenders against children. The cooperation between outpatient-clinical facilities from the prevention network'Kein Täter werden' and facilities or Institutions of the penal system is a unique constellation worldwide.
Network partners Hannover Medical School, Charité - University Hospital Berlin, University of Duisburg-Essen, University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein Campus Kiel, Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, University Hospital Leipzig A.ö.R
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
PPD - Prevention project Dunkelfeld - Prevention of sexual assault in men with pedophilic tendencies
For several years, the Clinical Department of Psychiatry, Social- and Psychological Therapy at Hannover Medical School has been working to prevent sexualized violence. The project for the prevention of child sexual abuse in the dark field (PPD; "Kein Täter werden"), which was launched in 2004 by the Berlin Institute for Sexology and Sexual Medicine at the Charité, offers therapeutic support to men with paedophilic tendencies in order to avoid sexual assault and thus make an active contribution to child protection.The PPD prevention network has been part of the GKV's range of services since 2018 and works to prevent child sexual abuse at a national level under the motto "Prevent acts before they happen". More than 11,000 people have contacted the PPD network to date.
Project partners: Charité - Berlin, University Hospital Giessen and Marburg GmbH, University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hannover Medical School, Center for Integrative Psychiatry - Kiel, University Hospital Leipzig A.ö.R., University of Regensburg / SozialStiftung Bamberg, Kompetenzzentrum Sexualmedizin Mecklenburg-Vorpommern e.V., University Hospital Ulm, University Medical Center Mainz, University Hospital Düsseldorf
Funding: Ministry of Social Affairs of Lower Saxony (2014 - 2017), National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds (2018 - 2022)
It has long been known that tics occur more frequently in some families. To date, however, it has not been possible to identify a specific gene (= hereditary trait) that actually causes tics. The aim of this study is to discover the genes responsible for the inheritance of tics. Your participation will help to uncover the causes of Tourette's syndrome so that new treatment options can be developed in the long term.
Partners: Numerous national (Hannover Medical School, University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf, Dresden University of Technology, University of Ulm) and international partners (e.g. in Barcelona, Seville, Lausanne, South Korea, USA, and many more); 25 institutions in total
Funding: Collaborative Genomic Studies of Tourette Disorder (TIC-Genetics): National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): 1R01MH115958-01
Previous research on return to work (RTW) for mental disorders has focused primarily on the time until the return to work. The time during and after the return has so far received little attention. Our multicenter research project in cooperation with five Clinical Departments aims to close this gap. A multi-professional treatment team will provide study participants with intensified support and aftercare when they return to work after a long period of absence due to mental health issues.
The concept combines medical and therapeutic measures with company measures in order to strengthen the dialog between those affected and key company stakeholders. The relevant variables recorded include sustained return to work, inability to work, functionality, self-efficacy expectations and self-reported days of absence from work. The concept is presented in detail in a manual and, in the event of a positive evaluation, is to be anchored in the task profile of the psychiatric outpatient clinics.
Consortium partners: Alexianer St. Joseph-Krankenhaus Berlin-Weißensee GmbH, Asklepios Clinical Departmentum Harburg, Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Burghof-Clinical Department GmbH & Co. KG, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Clinical Department Wittgenstein
Funding: Federal Joint Committee (GBA)
Recently completed projects
SIMCODE - A multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study on the efficacy of simvastatin as add-on therapy to escitalopram in patients with depression and severe obesity
Project partners: Charité - Berlin, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, University Medical Center Greifswald, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hannover Medical School, University Medical Center Leipzig, University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research
The aim of the AERIAL research network (Addiciton: Early Recognition and Intervention Across the Lifespan, 'Addiction: Early Recognition and Intervention Across the Lifespan) is to research new diagnostic and treatment options for addictive disorders and to implement corresponding measures in the healthcare system.
As part of the sub-project"Epigenetics and alcohol use disorders" (headed by Prof. Dr. Helge Frieling), epigenetic mechanisms (specifically DNA methylation) in the development and maintenance of alcohol addiction are to be investigated. The blood samples required for this will be obtained from the IMAGEN study, which is part of the joint AERIAL project. The findings will be used to improve the basic understanding, diagnostic methods and therapeutic strategies for alcohol dependence.
Network members / management of the joint projects: Charité - Berlin, Technical University of Dresden, Central Institute of Mental Health Mannheim, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Eberhard-Karls-University Tübingen, University Medicine Greifswald, Hannover Medical School, University of Lübeck, University of Potsdam
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF: 01EE1406G)
The interaction of genetic predisposition, autoimmunity and environmental factors (e.g. stress-inducing events, pre- and perinatal difficulties, and infections) could lead to an increased vulnerability to the development of tics and associated behaviors. However, the evidence for this is currently still insufficient. The longitudinal, mutlicentric EMTICS study, in which a total of 16 European centers are participating, aims to investigate the relationship between environmental factors (especially in relation to psychologic stress and exposure to beta-hemolytic A streptococci), the immune response/regulation of patients and the occurrence and course of tics. In addition, genetic pathomechanisms of tic disorders will be investigated in more detail and prediction models for predicting the risk and course of the disease will be developed.
Project partners: see here
Funding: EU
The purpose of this observational multicenter study was to investigate the safety of psychopharmacological treatment and the rate of adverse drug reactions in geriatric psychiatric inpatients. Older people have a higher risk of developing side effects under pharmacological treatment due to an altered metabolic situation, higher comorbidity rates and polypharmacy. In addition, gerontopsychiatric patients are often unable to articulate their symptoms clearly, e.g. due to pronounced cognitive impairment. The aim of the study was to obtain valid data on possible adverse drug reactions, their potential risk factors and outcome as well as on medical prescribing practices and to evaluate these as part of intensive pharmacovigilance monitoring at the five participating study centers.
Funding: Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM)
Participating institutes: Hannover Medical School, Asklepios Fachklinikum Brandenburg, Asklepios Fachklinikum Lübben, Asklepios Fachklinikum Teupitz, Krankenhaus Hedwigshöhe, Kompetenznetz TDM KJP e.V., AMSP e.V.
Project: "The leptin-hypothalamus-liver axis in ethanol-induced liver cirrhosis - changes due to transplantation and possible connection with recurrences"
In collaboration with the Clinical Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Endocrinology, we investigated the influence of liver transplantation on leptin levels and leptin promoter methylation in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis before and after transplantation in a BMBF/IFB-Tx-funded project. We were able to successfully publish the results in 2018; meanwhile, we are still working on another manuscript together with the Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapy Strategies (Head: Prof. Dr. Dr. Thomas Thum), which relates to circulating micro-RNA-21 in the same patient collective. Through this collaboration, we are also planning to investigate micro-RNAs during alcohol withdrawal therapy.
Our collaboration with the Department of Gastroenterology is further strengthened by a prospective study evaluating liver transplant patients logitudinally (i.e. over the course of a whole year). This study aims to identify factors that may predict treatment adherence, response to transplantation, relapse to alcohol dependence in patients with liver cirrhosis and alcohol use disorder.
IFB-Tx center members / main project leaders: Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapy Strategies (IMTTS), Institute of Cell Therapeutics, Institute of Transplantation Immunology (affiliation of all institutes: Hannover Medical School)
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF; 01EO0802)
In the treatment of tics, behavioral therapy using "Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tics" (CBIT) - also known as Habit Reversal Training - is recommended as the therapy of first choice. However, this therapy is not available to all patients in Germany due to a lack of suitably qualified therapists. In order to close this gap in care, we have developed a purely internet-based CBIT variant in the form of an online therapy platform (iCBIT) that patients can use from home, completely independently of a therapist. As part of a randomized controlled clinical trial, the effectiveness of Internet-based behavioral therapy (iCBIT) is to be investigated in patients with tic disorders. Recruitment has already been completed. Participation in the study is therefore no longer possible.
Project partners: Hannover Medical School, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Universität zu Lübeck, Uniklinikum Aachen, Technische Universität Dresden; with the support of Dipl.-Psy. Dr. Nadine Buddensiek & PD Dr. Christoph Schroeder, the Tourette-Gesellscfhaft Deutschland e.V. (TGD) and the Tourette Syndrome Interest Group (IVTS)
Funding: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF: 01KG1421, 2015-2020)