Table 2.
Socio-demographic and clinical details of all included studies investigating the effect of Mg as treatment.
| Author, Year | Sample | Study Type | Psychiatric Disorder | Psycho-Pathological Scale | Treatment | Treatment Duration | Results | Outcome | Direction of Evidences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [77] | 30 patients (7 M, 19 F; mean age 32.20 ± 9.54) + 30 hc (7 M, 20 F; mean age 32.07 ± 7.69) | Double-blind, placebo-controlled trial | Depression | BDI-II | Mg oxide 250 mg/die | 8 weeks | BDI score significantly declined in patients treated with Mg compared to placebo. | Mg supplementation was effective on depression status in depressed patients with Mg deficiency | (+) |
| [78] | 55 randomized to Immediate treatment (22 M, 33 F; mean age 55.2 ± 12.3) + 57 randomized to Delayed treatment (22 M, 35 F; mean age 50.1 ± 13.0) | Randomized case-control clinical trial | Depression | PHQ-9, GAD-7 | 248 mg of elemental Mg/die | 6 weeks | Clinically significant net improvement in PHQ-9 scores of -6.0 points and (GAD-7 in scores of -4.5 points. Similar effects were observed regardless of age, gender, baseline severity of depression, baseline Mg level, or use of antidepressants. Effects were observed within two weeks. | Mg is effective for mild-to-moderate depression in adults | (+) |
| [79] | 17 patients (6 M, 11 F; mean age 48.1±15.5) + 20 hc (10 M, 10 F; mean age 49.7±12.3) | Placebo-controlled study and review | Depression | HAMD, HAMA, CGI | Fluoxetine (20 to 40 mg/die) treatment was augmented with either placebo or Mg 40 mg ×3/die (equivalent to 3.30 mEq of Mg-aspartate) | 8 weeks | Fluoxetine + Mg group showed improvement in HDRS scores at week 8 than the fluoxetine+placebo group, but the difference was not statistically significant. | No significant superiority of Mg augmentation therapy on depressive and anxiety symptoms | (±) |
| [80] | 99 women (3 groups, mean age 29.4 ± 5.4, 26.4 ± 4.8, and 27.6 ± 5.1 respectively) | Randomized controlled clinical trial | Postpartum Depression and Anxiety | EPDS, SSTAI | 27 mg Zn-sulfate or 320 mg Mg-sulfate/die | 8 weeks | No significant difference in EPDS and SSTAI scores between groups. | Mg and zinc did not reduce postpartum anxiety and depressive symptoms | (−) |
| [81] | 71 medication-free ADHD (55 M, 16 F; mean age 9.7 ± 1.5) | randomized clinical trial | ADHD | ADHD-RS-IV, CGI, CGAS | Broad spectrum micronutrient formula (Daily Essential Nutrients, DEN) up to 12 cp/die, vs placebo (no Mg doses available) | 10 weeks | Most children entered the trial with nutrient levels falling within expected ranges. Regression analyses showed varying predictors across outcomes with no one of the predictors being consistently identified across different variables. | Limited value of using serum nutrient levels to predict treatment response, although Authors cannot rule out that other non-assayed nutrient levels may be more valuable | (±) |
| [82] | 264 (69 M, 195 F; mean age 31.6±8.5) | Randomized, single-blind clinical trial | Depressive, anxiety and stress symptoms | DASS-42 | Mg–vitamin B6 combination, respectively 300 mg/die and 30 mg/die or Mg alone (Magnespasmyl) 300 mg/die |
8 weeks | Both treatment arms reduced DASS-42 stress subscale score from baseline to Week 8. Adults with high stress score had a 24% greater improvement with Mg-vitamin B6 versus Mg at Week 8. | Mg supplementation alleviated stress in healthy adults with hypomagnesemia. Addition of vitamin B6 to Mg was not superior to Mg supplementation alone | (+) |
| [83] | 12 patients (3 M, 9 F, mean age 46.5±9) | Double-blind crossover trial | Treatment-Resistant Depression | PHQ-9, HAMD |
4 g Mg-sulfate/die in 5% dextrose or placeboinfusion of 5% dextrose | 8 days intervention periods with a 5 days washoutin between periods | No changes were recorded on the HAMD or PHQ-9 24 h post- treatment; serum Mg increased from baseline to day 7, PHQ-9 decreased from baseline to day 7. | Intravenous infusion of Mg- sulfate did not reduce depressive symptoms in adults with treatment-resistant depression | (−) |
Captions: (PHQ-9) Patient Health Questionnaire-9; (GAD-7) Generalized Anxiety Disorders-7; (EPDS) Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale; (SSTAI) Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory; (ADHD-RS-IV) ADHD Rating Scale IV; (DASS-42) Depression Anxiety Stress Scales; (CGAS) Children Global Assessment Scale; (+) positive outcome; (−) negative outcome; (±) unclear outcome.