Category: Depression

The license for weight control drug Rimonabant, taken by some people with Type 2 diabetes, has changed. If you have a history of depression, are taking or have in the past taken anti-depressants, you should not be on Rimonabant as it can cause severe complications. In these cases, seek medical advice immediately. In addition, if you develop symptoms of depression after taking Rimonabant, you should contact a healthcare professional straightaway.

People who crave chocolate when they are depressed are more likely to have a ‘neurotic’ than an ‘introverted’ type of personality, a new study from Australia has found. Over half of the depressed people surveyed reported food cravings, nearly all of them specifically craving chocolate. More women than men craved chocolate when depressed.

The frequency of depression in adolescence and young adulthood is associated with later mental health and economic problems, according to a new study from New Zealand. Depression is relatively common among adolescents and young adults, and is often a recurrent condition.

A combination of psychotherapy and antidepressant medication appears to be the most effective treatment for adolescents with major depressive disorder — more than medication alone or psychotherapy alone, according to results from a major clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The study was published in the October 2007 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

Researchers here have linked an increase in two immune system proteins essential for inflammation to a latent viral infection and proposed a chain of events that might accelerate cardiovascular disease.The same process may be involved in a host of other ailments plaguing the elderly.The findings also suggest that chronic depression may play a key role in starting the cascade that can lead to the buildup of plaques clogging coronary arteries.

Treating depressed teenagers with a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy and fluoxetine, an antidepressant medication, seems to offer better results than either medication alone or cognitive behavioral therapy alone, according to an article in Archives of General Psychiatry (JAMA/Archives).The authors explain that 5% of teenagers are affected by major depressive disorder - this causes great difficulties for the patient and his/her family, explain the authors.

NeuroMark, a Boulder, Colorado company, has announced the immediate availability of a genetic test to identify people at risk of suicidal ideation — thoughts of committing suicide — when prescribed an antidepressant drug. The test, called the Mark-C? test, is expected to help restore public confidence in antidepressant medication and help to reduce a recently announced spike in suicide rates among U.S. youth.

A new Kaiser Permanente study, the first integrated survey of maternal depression, shows that more than one in seven women are depressed at some time during the nine months before becoming pregnant, during pregnancy, or in the nine months after childbirth.

A large observational study that tracked women from nine months prior to pregnancy through nine months after delivery has revealed that the number of women diagnosed with depression actually decreases slightly during pregnancy, then rises after delivery. The study also confirmed that many women who experience depression during pregnancy or the postpartum period have a history of earlier depression.

DNA samples from patients in the federally funded Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression (STAR*D) trial have revealed two genetic markers that appear to be associated with the emergence of suicidal thoughts during treatment with citalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant. The findings strongly suggest a genetic basis underlying the rare emergence of suicidal thoughts associated with taking an SSRI.