Archive for August, 2007
« Previous EntriesBack To Campus: Mental Health America Develops Resources For College Students
Tuesday, August 28th, 2007In anticipation of the new school year, Mental Health America and its 320 affiliates nationwide have provided resources to college students on campuses across the nation to help them manage stress levels and address common mental health problems. The August edition of the Mental Health America podcast, Chiming In, explores campus mental health issues and provides tips and resources to help students improve mental health. [click link for full article]
Damp, Moldy Houses May Contribute To Depression
Friday, August 24th, 2007Living in a damp and moldy house can contribute to depression independently of other personal and housing characteristics. Based on a study of almost 6,000 adults living in eight European cities, researchers found that dampness and mold in a home is associated with elevated risk of depression. This heightened risk seemed to be due to both a perceived lack of control over the housing environment and physical health problems that are likely to be related to mold exposure. [click link for full article]
New Data Suggest Cymbalta(R) Reduced Pain In Fibromyalgia Patients With And Without Depression
Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007New data suggest that patients with fibromyalgia treated with 60mg or 120mg of Cymbalta(R) (duloxetine HCl) experienced greater reduction in pain severity beginning one week after starting duloxetine than those taking placebo (sugar pill), as measured by the Brief Pain Inventory Average Pain Score (BPI). [click link for full article]
How Axons Process Information May Shed Light On Root Of Cognitive Disorders
Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007Scientists know that information travels between brain cells along hairlike extensions called axons. For the first time, researchers have found that axons don’t just transmit information — they can turn the signal up or down with the right stimulation.This finding may help scientists develop treatments for psychiatric disorders such as depression and schizophrenia in which it is thought that different parts of the brain do not communicate correctly with each other. [click link for full article]
Normal Emotional Processing Breaks Down In Clinical Depression, Brain Imaging Reveals
Tuesday, August 21st, 2007Brain imaging has revealed a breakdown in normal patterns of emotional processing that impairs the ability of people with clinical depression to suppress negative emotional states. Efforts by depressed patients to suppress their feelings when viewing emotionally negative images enhanced activity in several brain areas, including the amygdala, known to play a role in generating emotion, according to a report in The Journal of Neuroscience. [click link for full article]
New Study Supports Efficacy Of Vagus Nerve Stimulation For Treatment-Resistant Depression
Tuesday, August 21st, 2007Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) today announced the results of a functional MRI (fMRI) study examining the effects of VNS (Vagus Nerve Stimulation) Therapy(TM) for patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The study, led by Ziad Nahas, M.D., associate professor, MUSC Department of Psychiatry, appears in the August 2007 issue of peer-reviewed Neuropsychopharmacology. The results show that VNS Therapy modulates areas of the brain that control mood. [click link for full article]
Time And Season Change Can Trigger A Fall Into The ‘Winter Blues’ For Some
Sunday, August 19th, 2007Setting the clocks back for daylight savings time means an extra hour of sleep and shorter days for most people, but for the thousands who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), the shorter days and absence of daylight can actually cause depression.Also known as the “Winter Blues,” SAD is primarily diagnosed in adults with roughly 60 to 90 percent of the diagnoses occurring in women. [click link for full article]
When Dad Is Involved Children Of Depressed Moms Do Better, SLU Researcher Finds
Saturday, August 18th, 2007Children whose mothers are depressed are less likely to develop problem behaviors if their fathers are actively engaged in family life, a Saint Louis University researcher finds.It is well documented that children living in homes with depressed mothers are at increased risk of developing problems such as aggression, hyperactivity, depression and anxiety. However, an involved father — one who has a positive relationship with his children — may reduce the risk of those behaviors. [click link for full article]
Placebo Effect May Explain Relapse From Antidepressant Medication
Saturday, August 18th, 2007A new study by Rhode Island Hospital researchers indicates that a relapse during antidepressant continuation treatment may be due to a relapse in patients who were not true drug responders. The loss of drug response may be due to loss of placebo response (a positive medical response to taking a placebo as if it were an active medication.). The study was published in the August issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. [click link for full article]
Using Antidepressants During Pregnancy - How Common And For What Reasons?
Thursday, August 16th, 2007A new study in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology examines the prevalence of antidepressant use before, during and after pregnancy and identifies the factors for their use. It is also the first study of its kind to determine the types and dosage of antidepressants prescribed to pregnant women. 97,680 pregnant women from the province of Quebec in Canada between the ages of 15 and 45 were studied between 1998 and 2002. [click link for full article]
« Previous Entries