Cristina Cusin, MD: Finding Solutions for Severe Depression
Episode #26 of the Charged podcast
About Cristina Cusin, MD
Dr. Cusin went to Medical School at the Universita degli Studi, in Milan, Italy, where she also completed a residency in Psychiatry.
Dr. Cusin was working as Psychiatrist in an inpatient unit and involved in research when in 2004 she decided to come to the U.S. for a Research Fellowship at Mass. General Hospital.
She decided to pursue further training in the U.S. and after completing the Adult Psychiatry Residency at MGH/McLean she joined the staff of the Depression Clinical & Research Program (DCRP), under the mentorship of Dr Maurizio Fava.
She is Associate Professor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
Dr. Cusin is the director and founder of the MGH Ketamine clinic for treatment-resistant depression. She also has an outpatient clinic at the DCRP and often performs consultations for patients with Treatment-Resistant Depression. She has expertise in ketamine, VNS and DBS. Finally, she is one of the clinicians in the ECT team at MGH and she is involved in numerous research studies on ketamine in treatment-resistant mood disorders at MGH.
Clinical Interests:
- Deep brain stimulation
- Electroconvulsive therapy
- Genetics of mood disorders
- Ketamine Treatment
- Mechanisms of placebo response
- Psychopharmacology
- Treatment-resistant depression
Treats:
- Adult
Languages:
- French, Italian
Locations
Mass General Psychiatry: Depression Clinical & Research Program
One Bowdoin Square
6th Floor
Boston, MA 02114
Phone: 617-726-8895
Medical Education
- MD, Universita Di Milano
- Residency, Massachusetts General Hospital
- Residency, Universita degli Studi di Milano
- Fellowship, Universita Vita Salute San Raffaele
Accepted Insurance Plans
- Aetna
- Beech Street
- Blue Cross Blue Shield
- Blue Cross Blue Shield Medicare
- Carelon Behavioral Health
- Commonwealth Care Alliance
- Coventry
- Evernorth Behavioral Health
- Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
- Humana
- Mass General Brigham Health Plan
- MassHealth
- Medicaid ME
- Medicaid NH
- Medicaid RI
- Medicaid VT
- Medicare
- Medicare ACO
- Multiplan
- Railroad Medicare
- Senior Whole Health
- TriCare
- Tufts Health Plan
- United Behavioral Health
- Wellpoint
- WellSense
- WellSense NH
Note: This provider may accept more insurance plans than shown; please call the practice to find out if your plan is accepted.
Research
Dr. Cusin's field of interest is Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD).
At the Depression Clinical & Research Program (DCRP), she is involved in numerous clinical trials, sponsored by NIMH and foundations, investigating new pharmacologic treatments for Major Depression and TRD, including intravenous administration of ketamine
She was one of the programmers in the pivotal trial for Deep Brain Stimulation for MDD sponsored by Medtronic, for patients affected by extremely treatment-refractory depression. She is currently involved in a research study investigating Vagal Nerve Stimulator for depression.
Dr. Cusin's focus of research includes detecting biomarkers of antidepressant response and possible neurobiological mechanisms of placebo response in antidepressant clinical trials.
Absolutely fantastic. Extremely knowledgeable, respectful of the patient, and made multiple.
Extremely professional, kind and patient during our visit. She explains and answers everything in detail. I look forward to our appointments every single time. She has saved my life more than once. I'm extremely grateful for this doctor.
Dr Cusin is the finest doctor I have worked with in my entire life, hands down. I have no idea how she is able to do all that she does and still manage to provide such attentive, and personalized care --she is brilliant and her research has saved my life.
Dr. Cusin is kind, extremely knowledgeable and insightful. Would never give her up as my Dr.
Dr. Cusin is and has been an amazing provider who truly cares about her patients and does everything in her (vast) ability to help
Dr. Cusin was respectful, knowledgeable, and the first provider to take my concerns seriously and to provide well reasoned explanation for her recommendations
Dr. Cusin has been an incredible resource at a time in my life where I truly needed one. I respect her judgment and am grateful for her care.
My provider is very thorough and provides top quality care.
I felt confused about the different treatment options. And after the appointment, I couldn't remember.
A long-term relationship with Dr. Cusin, who's a psychiatrist, I have complete confidence in her. And I think one of the main points I want to make is that using Zoom is incredibly convenient for both of us. I live out in [redacted], so I feel like I'm able to get the expert care of Mass General just by living a fair distance away and seeing the ... Read More