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Sidney Kennedy

MD, FRCPC, MRC Psych

Scientist

Email: sidney.kennedy@unityhealth.to
Tel: 416-864-2689

Research Programs

Biography

Sidney H. Kennedy is Professor of Psychiatry and Arthur Sommer Rotenberg Chair in Depression and Suicide Studies at the University of Toronto, Director of the Centre for Suicide and Depression Studies at St. Michael’s Hospital, and a Scientist at Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute and Krembil Research Institute in Toronto. Dr. Kennedy is the lead investigator for the Canadian Biomarker Integration Network in Depression (CAN-BIND), a national depression biomarker initiative. He has published extensively on new drug evaluation, neuroimaging and neurostimulation therapies, personality factors in depression, antidepressant effects on sexual function, and treatment guidelines for Major Depressive Disorder and Bipolar Disorder.

Dr. Kennedy is the Immediate Past President of the International Society for Affective Disorders, former President of the Canadian College of Neuropsychopharmacology, and the founding chair of the Canadian Network for Mood and Anxiety Treatments (CANMAT).

Dr. Kennedy has authored close to 500 peer-reviewed publications and 11 books on depression and related topics. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences and the Royal Society of Canada.

Recent Publications

  1. Hespe, GE, Saunders, MN, Hamill, JB, Heidenreich, KN, Yosef, M, Khalatbari, S et al.. Postmastectomy Pain Syndrome Treated with Neurectomy and Dermal Sensory Peripheral Nerve Interfaces: Improvements in Pain and Opioid Usage. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2025; :. doi: 10.1097/PRS.0000000000012641. PubMed PMID:41289024 .
  2. Xiao, W, Woodham, RD, Cui, Y, Wen, J, Antoniades, M, Srinivasan, D et al.. Neuroanatomical dimensions in major depression linked to cognition, adverse life events, self-harm, metabolomics and genetics. Commun Med (Lond). 2025;5 (1):502. doi: 10.1038/s43856-025-01219-5. PubMed PMID:41258534 PubMed Central PMC12663290.
  3. Bahji, A, Brietzke, E, Cooke, NCA, Clement, F, Frey, BN, Hofmeister, M et al.. The Canadian Network for Mood and Anxiety Treatments Task Force Recommendations for the Use of Probiotics, Prebiotics, Synbiotics, and Fecal Microbiota Transplants in Adults With Major Depressive Disorder: Recommandations du Groupe de travail du Réseau canadien pour le traitement des troubles de l'humeur et de l'anxiété (Canadian Network for Mood and Anxiety Treatments, CANMAT) concernant l'utilisation des probiotiques, des prébiotiques, des symbiotiques et de la transplantation de microbiote fécal chez les adultes atteints de trouble dépressif majeur. Can J Psychiatry. 2025; :7067437251394363. doi: 10.1177/07067437251394363. PubMed PMID:41252333 PubMed Central PMC12626857.
  4. Giacobbe, P, Rizvi, SJ, Ceniti, AK, Tomlinson, G, Elias, GJB, Germann, J et al.. Deep Brain Stimulation to the Subgenual Cingulate Gyrus for Treatment-Resistant Depression: A Randomized Controlled Trial and 2-Year Long-Term Follow-Up: Stimulation cérébrale profonde du gyrus cingulaire subgénual pour traiter la dépression résistante au traitement : Essai contrôlé à répartition aléatoire et suivi à long terme sur deux ans. Can J Psychiatry. 2025; :7067437251369226. doi: 10.1177/07067437251369226. PubMed PMID:41171999 PubMed Central PMC12578624.
  5. Iskin, SA, Elias, GJB, Naheed, A, Pinto, J, Omere, U, Kennedy, SH et al.. Capturing Brain Response Patterns to Subcallosal Cingulate Deep Brain Stimulation Using Cycling fMRI: A Proof-of-Concept Study: Acquisition de schémas cérébraux de réponse à la stimulation cérébrale profonde ciblant le cortex cingulaire subgénual à l'aide de l'IRMf en cycles : étude de validation. Can J Psychiatry. 2025; :7067437251387573. doi: 10.1177/07067437251387573. PubMed PMID:41129720 PubMed Central PMC12549608.
  6. Carlqvist, A, INTERBIO-21st Consortium, Norris, S, Quigley, MA, Hemelaar, J. Comparative growth of children who are HIV-exposed and uninfected with those who are HIV-unexposed and uninfected at age 1 and 2 years in South Africa: a prospective cohort study. EClinicalMedicine. 2025;89 :103515. doi: 10.1016/j.eclinm.2025.103515. PubMed PMID:41048665 PubMed Central PMC12494935.
  7. Lam, RW, Michalak, EE, Murphy, JK, Colquhoun, H, Ng, C, Culpepper, L et al.. Standard Versus Enhanced Measurement-Based Care Effectiveness for Depression (EMBED): Protocol for a Cluster Randomized Implementation-Effectiveness Trial. Cureus. 2025;17 (8):e90395. doi: 10.7759/cureus.90395. PubMed PMID:40970017 PubMed Central PMC12442948.
  8. Himes, LM, Mayberg, HS, Husain, MM, Holtzheimer, PE, Lozano, AM, Kennedy, SH et al.. Revisiting subcallosal cingulate deep brain stimulation for depression: Long-term safety and effectiveness outcomes from a pooled analysis of 172 implanted patients. Brain Stimul. 2025;18 (5):1632-1640. doi: 10.1016/j.brs.2025.08.017. PubMed PMID:40854479 .
  9. Kumari, B, Hussain, NF, Kennedy, SH, Papageorghiou, AT, Das, JK, Bhutta, ZA et al.. Women in science: bridging gaps in basic sciences. Trends Mol Med. 2025;31 (11):973-976. doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2025.07.005. PubMed PMID:40796454 PubMed Central PMC12682320.
  10. Rowe, J, Nogovitsyn, N, Mazurka, R, Squires, SD, Hassel, S, Poppenk, J et al.. Latent Profile Analysis of Childhood Maltreatment and Neural Markers in Depression. JAMA Netw Open. 2025;8 (8):e2525147. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.25147. PubMed PMID:40758349 PubMed Central PMC12322798.
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Affiliations & Other Activities

  • Staff Physician, Department of Mental Health, St. Michael’s Hospital
  • Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto
  • Research Scientist, Krembil Neurosciences, University Health Network