Deconstructing the Rapid Antidepressant Responses: Active vs. Placebo Effects in Interventional Psychiatry
Our Clinical Grand Rounds series continues on October 23, 2026 with a presentation on rapid antidepressant responses by Drs. Marta Pecińa and Marie Anne Gebara.
Marta Pecińa, MD, PhD is Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. She earned her MD, and her PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Navarra in Spain. After completing her psychiatry residency at the University of Navarra Medical Center, she obtained postdoctoral training in neuroimaging at the University of Michigan. She joined the Department of Psychiatry faculty in 2016. Dr. Peciña’s research focuses on the neurobiology and treatment of depression, as well as on identifying individual differences in mechanisms of antidepressant treatment response. Her clinical expertise in depression treatment complements her use of functional magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography to investigate response to pharmacological treatments.
Marie Anne Gebara, MD, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, earned her MD from the American University of Beirut (Lebanon), then came to the United States for psychiatry residency training at Washington University in St. Louis Barnes Jewish Hospital. Upon completing her residency, she undertook a clinical fellowship in geriatric psychiatry at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital, followed by a research fellowship at the Veteran’s Association (VA) Pittsburgh Healthcare System and a postdoctoral research fellowship in Pitt Psychiatry’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded T32 training program in geriatric psychiatry. She was appointed to the Department of Psychiatry faculty in 2019. An outstanding clinician, Dr. Gebara has provided clinical service in numerous UPMC clinics and nursing facilities and is engaged in research related to treatment-resistant depression in older adults, as well as the intersection of sleep and mood disorders in older adults.
Join us in the UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital Auditorium or via Zoom for this hybrid event:
Link: https://pitt.zoom.us/j/96929010648
Passcode: 626531
For More Information, please contact Shardai Key-Ward at keysj4@upmc.edu.
CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS. The entirety of this program will be a lecture by the speaker(s). All individuals able to control the content of this educational activity are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with any proprietary entity producing, marketing, re-selling, or distributing health care goods or services, used on, or consumed by, patients. Registration is not required for this event. This event is free and there will be no refunds. The University of Pittsburgh is an affirmative action, equal opportunity institution. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditsTM. Each physician should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. Other health care professionals are awarded .15 continuing education units (CEUs), which are equal to 1.5 contact hours. In accordance with Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education requirements on disclosure, information about relationships of presenters with commercial interests (if any) will be included in materials which will be distributed at the time of the conference. WPH is approved by the American Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. WPH maintains responsibility for this program and its contents. This program is being offered for 1.5 continuing education credits. The indicated number of clock hours of continuing education is provided through UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital’s Office of Educational Resources and Planning, a PA-approved provider of social work continuing education in accordance with all the applicable educational and professional standards of the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapist. These clock hours satisfy requirements for LSW/LCSW, LPC and LMFT renewal. For more information, call (412) 204-9085.
