Saturday, May 31, 2008

Study suggests antidepressants for stroke victims

Doctors may want to give stroke victims antidepressants right away instead of waiting until they develop depression, a common complication, new research suggests.

The findings may lead to an expanded use for antidepressants. Someday high-risk people like stroke patients might take the drugs before suffering depression — just as people now take cholesterol drugs to prevent heart attacks, the lead author said.

The researchers gave low doses of the antidepressant Lexapro to stroke patients. The patients on the drug were 4.5 times less likely to develop depression than patients taking a dummy pill.

More than 700,000 Americans suffer strokes each year and more than one-third will develop depression in the next two years. Stroke patients with depression recover more slowly and are more likely to die, according to previous research.

"We showed you could in fact prevent the development of depression after stroke," said Dr. Robert Robinson of the University of Iowa who led the study. "I hope I don't have a stroke, but if I do, I would certainly want to be placed on an antidepressant."

READ MORE @ ASSOCIATED PRESS

Friday, May 30, 2008

U.S. Army suicides rise 13 percent

The number of U.S. Army suicides increased again last year amid the most violent year yet in both the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

An army official said Thursday that 115 troops committed suicide in 2007, an increase of almost 13 percent over the previous year's 102. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because a full report on the deaths was not being released until later.

About a quarter of the deaths occurred in Iraq.

The 115 confirmed deaths among active duty soldiers and National Guard and Reserve troops that had been activated was a lower number than previously feared. Preliminary figures released in January showed as many as 121 troops might have killed themselves, but some of the deaths were still under investigation then and have been attributed since to other causes, the officials said.

READ MORE @ INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Current Prescriptions Of Psychotropic Drugs Are Irrational For The Patients But Very Rational For The Big Pharma

UK psychiatrist David Healy has attacked current prescription habits of psychiatrists which are strongly influenced by the pharmaceutical propaganda in the fourth 2008 issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

Commenting on a paper by Harvard investigators on the psychology of risk and prescriptions of psychotropic drugs, Healy denounces a real crisis in psychiatry at present. In part this stems from the lack of independent studies. Allied to this is a lack of independent access to what data there are and an unsophisticated interpretation of the data that are available, based on conceptual models that seem increasingly inadequate. It is important that clinicians understand the dynamics that impinge on their judgment as it is almost certainly the case that pharmaceutical companies engineer clinical perceptions based on side effect profiles. The basic company position is that clinicians have no thoughts in their minds other than those put there by us or our competitors, and in order to plant a message or dislodge those of competitors companies employ all their sophisticated means.

READ MORE @ MEDICAL NEWS TODAY

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Pentagon Totals Rise for Stress Disorder

Nearly 40,000 military personnel have been given diagnoses of post-traumatic stress disorder since 2003, Pentagon records show.

Officials say they believe that many other cases exist and have been encouraging service members to obtain help, even if they go to private therapists and do not report it to the military. The 40,000 cases are those tracked by the military.

Officials have also estimated that half the military personnel with mental problems do not receive treatment because they are embarrassed or fear that it might hurt their careers.

A report on diagnosed cases released on Tuesday by the Army surgeon general, Lt. Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker, showed that the hardest-hit services last year were the Marines and Army, the two forces bearing the brunt of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Army reported more than 10,000 new cases last year, up from more than 6,800 the previous year. More than 28,000 soldiers have been diagnosed with the disorder over the last five years.

READ MORE @ NY TIMES

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Short-term use of antipsychotics in older adults with dementia linked to serious adverse events

Older adults with dementia who receive short-term courses of antipsychotic medications are more likely to be hospitalized or die than those who do not take the drugs, according to a report in the May 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

“Newer antipsychotic drugs (olanzapine, quetiapine fumarate and risperidone) have been on the market for more than a decade and are commonly used to treat the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia,” the authors write as background information in the article. “Antipsychotic drugs are often used for short periods to treat agitation in clinical practice. They are frequently prescribed around the time of nursing home admission.” About 17 percent of individuals admitted to nursing homes are starting on antipsychotic medication within 100 days, and 10 percent receive only a single prescription. Given the widespread use of short-term prescriptions, it is important to evaluate their safety, the authors note.

READ MORE @ EUREKALERT

Monday, May 26, 2008

Pharmaceutical Payola-Drug Marketing to Doctors

Last week, a Congressional committee properly raked Big Pharma over the coals for misleading advertising of pharmaceuticals.

A hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's oversight subcommittee focused on advertising campaigns for three drugs, including the remarkable case of Robert Jarvik. Jarvik is featured in endlessly re-run ads for Pfizer's blockbuster cholesterol drug Lipitor. Known as the inventor of the Jarvik artificial heart, he is not a cardiologist, not a licensed medical doctor and not authorized to prescribe pharmaceuticals. He's shown in the ads engaged in vigorous rowing activity, but in fact he doesn't row. Pfizer pulled the ads in February after controversy started brewing.

Among industrialized countries, only the United States and New Zealand permit drug companies to market directly to consumers. It's a bad idea, it drives bad medicine, and it should be banned.

But although it has the highest profile, direct-to-consumer advertising is a small part of Pharma's marketing machine.

READ MORE @ CORP WATCH

Sunday, May 25, 2008

No Link Found Between Antidepressants And Birth Defects, According To New Study

Expectant mothers can safely use prescribed antidepressants during their first trimester, according to a new study from the Université de Montréal and Ste. Justine Hospital published in the May edition of the British Journal of Psychiatry.

Dr. Anick Bérard and her team found that antidepressants have no effect on foetal development. "This is the first study to investigate the impact of antidepressant use during the first trimester of pregnancy in mothers with psychiatric disorders," she said. "In terms of birth malformations in this population, we found no difference between women who used antidepressants and those who did not use antidepressants during their first trimester.

READ MORE @ SCIENCE DAILY

Friday, May 23, 2008

ECT: DoctorsECT: Doctors don't know how it works, so why use it? don't know how it works, so why use it?

Using electroconvulsive therapy for depression remains controversial. Dr Max Pemberton examines the evidence

Depression kills. Suicide in the UK constitutes nearly one per cent of deaths from all causes every year.

It is the single biggest killer of young men after road traffic accidents, and the 2001 Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Deaths found that suicide was the leading cause of maternal mortality in the UK.

Depression also destroys lives insidiously, dismantling them piece by piece until little remains. With around a quarter of us experiencing depression in our lifetimes, and between five and 10 per cent suffering from it at any one time, it represents a significant public health issue.

But depression is treatable. The development of talking and pharmaceutical therapies such as cognitive behavioural therapy and antidepressants has meant that the lives of millions of people have been transformed.

READ MORE @ TELEGRAPH

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Medication May Prevent Depression In Patients With Head And Neck Cancer

Taking the antidepressant citalopram before beginning treatment for head and neck cancer may help prevent depression during therapy, according to results of a pilot study.

"Treatment for head and neck cancer can be arduous and debilitating," the authors write as background information in the article. "Psychiatric morbidity in these patients is frequent and underdiagnosed. Major depressive disorder has been reported in up to 40 percent of patients with head and neck cancer, typically within the first three months of diagnosis."

READ MORE @ SCIENCE DAILY

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

No link between treatment with antidepressants and risk of cancer in people with HIV

Treatment with antidepressants does not increase the risk of any kind of cancer in people with HIV, according to a UK study published in the May 10th edition of the Journal of Clinical Oncology. The researchers looked at the use of both older tricyclic antidepressants and more modern SSRI antidepressants, such as fluoxetine, by people with HIV in both the period before and after effective anti-HIV treatment became available. No link between the use of antidepressants was found in any time period.

There is conflicting information about the link between use of both tricyclic and SSRI antidepressants and the risk of cancer. Some studies have suggested a link between their use and the risk of some cancers, but others have not. By contrast, some research has suggested that treatment with SSRI antidepressants could have an anti-cancer effect in patients with Burkitt lymphoma.

No study has looked at the link between treatment with tricyclic or SSRI antidepressants and the risk of cancer in people with HIV in either the period before or after effective anti-HIV treatment became available. Nor has any study previously looked for a possible link between cancer and treatment with antidepressants and the individual classes of antiretroviral drugs.

READ MORE @ AIDSMAP

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

No sleep 'renders brain erratic'

Scientists have shown relying on the sleep deprived-brain to perform well is potentially fraught with danger.

They found that even after sleep deprivation, people have periods of near normal brain function in which they can finish tasks quickly.

However, this is mixed with periods of slow response and severe drops in visual processing and attention.

The study, by Duke University and the National University of Singapore, appears in the Journal of Neuroscience.

The researchers said the findings had implications for people who have to struggle through night work, from long distance lorry drivers to on-call doctors.

Lead researcher Professor Michael Chee said: "The periods of apparently normal functioning could give a false sense of competency and security when, in fact, the brain's inconsistency could have dire consequences.

READ MORE @ BBC

Monday, May 19, 2008

Antipsychotics Found to Have Different Ethnic and Metabolic Profiles: Presented at APA

Antipsychotic medications have different effects depending on the patient's specific metabolism and ethnicity, according to a post-hoc analysis of a randomized trial that compared aripiprazole and olanzapine reported here at the 161st Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Associations (APA).

The study compared the metabolic and racial and/or ethnic effects of 2 antipsychotic medications -- olanzapine and aripiprazole -- that are both approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for treatment of schizophrenia.

In the 26-week, double-blind, randomized, controlled trial, the effects of aripiprazole and olanzapine were compared in patients who had been grouped according to their ethnicity -- "White/Other" (n = 67); "Black" (n = 86); "Hispanic" (n = 51)

READ MORE @ DOCTOR'S GUIDE

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Obesity tied to risk of psychiatric disorders

Obesity is a well known risk factor for certain physical health problems, but a new study suggests that heavy adults also have higher rates of psychiatric disorders.

Using data from a national health survey of more than 40,000 Americans, researchers found that obese adults were up to twice as likely to suffer from depression, anxiety and other mental health conditions as normal-weight adults.

In addition, even moderately overweight people had elevated rates of anxiety disorders, the study found.

Whether excess pounds somehow lead to mental health problems is not clear, according to the researchers. But the findings do indicate that a range of psychiatric disorders are more common among overweight people.

READ MORE @ REUTERS

Saturday, May 17, 2008

AstraZeneca's Seroquel Cleared for Bipolar Disorder (Update2)

AstraZeneca Plc, the U.K.'s second-largest drugmaker, won U.S. approval to widen the use of its Seroquel antipsychotic medicine to treat bipolar disorder, pitting the treatment against Eli Lilly & Co.'s top-selling Zyprexa and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s Abilify.

Patients may take the therapy as an adjunct to the standard treatments lithium or divalproex, London-based AstraZeneca said today in a statement.

Seroquel brought in $4.03 billion last year, making it AstraZeneca's second-best-selling product after Nexium for ulcers. AstraZeneca is trying to broaden the medicine's use to protect sales under threat from generic copies. The drugmaker this month asked the Food and Drug Administration to approve the therapy to treat generalized anxiety disorder.

``Seroquel is increasingly being rolled out for additional indications and may, in due course, become the go-to product for depressive disorders,'' Charles Stanley analyst Jeremy Batstone-Carr said in an e-mail.

READ MORE @ BLOOMBERG

Friday, May 16, 2008

APA: Drug Interactions a Common Risk for Schizophrenic Patients

One-fifth of patients with schizophrenia receive prescriptions for drugs that can cause dangerous interactions when taken in combination, a researcher said here.

Significant adverse effects were rare, but between 18% and 22% of Ohio Medicaid patients under treatment for schizophrenia were given prescriptions for an antipsychotic and one or more other drugs with well-known interaction potential by the same physician or pharmacy, reported Jeff Guo, Ph.D., of the University of Cincinnati.

What's more, 11% to 12% of patients received prescriptions for such dangerous drug combinations from the same provider on the same day, Dr. Guo told attendees at the American Psychiatric Association meeting.

READ MORE @ MEDPAGE TODAY

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Do antidepressants enhance immune function? - Ex vivo results from HIV positive individuals with and without depression

Infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which leads to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), is an epidemic of global concern. According to the most recent estimates, released in November 2007, by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 33.2 million worldwide are living with HIV infection currently. Although the rates of infection appear to be decreasing, there are obviously immense implications for achieving improvements in HIV/AIDS treatment.

The functioning of natural killer (NK) cells, which are a major element of the innate immunity system and are involved in the body’s first line of defense against infections such as HIV, is decreased in both HIV and depression. A group of researchers who have previously found that stress and depression impair NK cell function and accelerate the course of HIV/AIDS are now publishing a new report in the May 1st issue of Biological Psychiatry.

In this study, they recruited both depressed and non-depressed HIV-infected women and studied the ex vivo effects of three drugs, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), a substance P antagonist, and a glucocorticoid antagonist, on their NK cell activity. These drugs were selected because, as the authors state, each “affect[s] underlying regulatory systems that have been extensively investigated in both stress and depression research as well as immune and viral research.” The scientists found that the SSRI citalopram, and the substance P antagonist CP 96,345, but not the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist RU486, increased NK cell activity. According to Dr. Dwight Evans, corresponding author of the article: “The present findings provide evidence that natural killer cell function in HIV infection may be enhanced by selective serotonin reuptake inhibition and also by substance P antagonism in both depressed and non-depressed individuals.”

READ MORE @ EUREKALERT

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

APA: Antipsychotic Side Effects More Common in Patients with Bipolar Disorder

Patients with bipolar disorder were roughly twice as likely to suffer movement-related side effects from antipsychotic drugs as those with schizophrenia, a researcher said here.

That was the result of a meta-analysis looking at the frequency of extrapyramidal symptoms with haloperidol (Haldol) and five atypical antipsychotics reported by Keming Gao, M.D., of Case Western University in Cleveland, at the American Psychiatric Association meeting and in the April issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology.

Only olanzapine (Zyprexa) was no different from placebo in causing extrapyramidal symptoms in either bipolar or schizophrenic patients, Dr. Gao said.

The researchers pooled data from 24 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, monotherapy trials of various antipsychotic agents in bipolar disorder, mania, and schizophrenia.

They calculated risks as the number of patients needed to treat to cause harm (NNTH) to one patient. Thus, an NNTH value of 10 indicates that for every 10 patients treated, one would develop extrapyramidal symptoms.

READ MORE @ MEDPAGE TODAY

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Depression Diversity: Brain Studies Reveal Big Differences Among Individuals

Depressed people may have far fewer of the receptors for some of the brain's "feel good" stress-response chemicals than non-depressed people, new University of Michigan Depression Center research shows. Scans show untreated depressed people have fewer serotonin and opioid receptors, and that variation is linked to symptoms and treatment response.

And even among depressed people, the numbers of these receptors can vary greatly. What's more, the number of receptors a depressed person has appears to be linked with the severity of their symptoms - and the chances that they'll feel better after taking a medication.

These preliminary findings, presented Tuesday at the American Psychiatric Association's annual meeting in Washington, D.C., amplify a growing understanding of depression as a condition that affects different people in different ways, and is solidly rooted in genetic and molecular factors that are unique to each individual.

The lead U-M researcher, Jon-Kar Zubieta, M.D., Ph.D., says these new results bolster what other researchers have been finding in recent years.

READ MORE @ SCIENCE DAILY

Monday, May 12, 2008

Antidepressants do work in depression while evidence for CBT is poorer say experts

A new revision of clinical guidelines to help doctors manage patients with depression has challenged the rationale behind the UK government’s policy of rolling out of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for milder depression.

According to a comprehensive review of treatments for depression, there is a lack of evidence for CBT being more helpful than other forms of psychological support in mild depression or for its efficacy in severe depression. There is also good evidence for antidepressants being effective in depression, with benefit increasing the more severe the depression. This is contrary to recent reports that antidepressants don’t work except in the most severe depression.

Dr Ian Anderson, Senior Lecturer and Honorary Consultant Psychiatrist, Neuroscience and Psychiatry Unit, University of Manchester, UK, says the cost effectiveness of CBT should be thoroughly investigated before it is adopted more widely because it is likely to be offered to people with milder depression where the evidence is poorest.

“There is often not a level playing field in considering evidence for drugs versus psychological treatment, especially in milder depression,” Dr Anderson explains, adding that specific psychological treatments are relatively expensive compared to drug treatments because treatment involves training of the therapists as well as the costs of administering the intervention.

READ MORE @ EUREKALERT

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Several Therapies Show Promise for Vascular Depression

New treatments for a type of depression in the elderly related to blood vessels -- called vascular depression -- are under development, and researchers have discovered why some patients with this condition fail to respond to current medications.

Details of the findings were to be presented Wednesday during a news conference by researchers taking part in U.S. National Institute of Mental Health symposiums at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, in Washington, D.C.

Vascular depression is a recently recognized type of depression that usually develops in patients older than age 60. The condition is associated with loss of blood supply to the brain.

"Mental health practitioners and patients should be aware of the relationship between vascular problems and depression, and should understand the value of preventing vascular changes that might lead to difficult-to-treat depressions, for example, through early recognition and treatment of high blood pressure," Dr. John Newcomer, of Washington University in St. Louis, said in a prepared statement.

READ MORE @ WASHINGTON POST

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Imaging Identifies Brain Regions and Chemicals Underlying Mood Disorders; May Lead to Better Treatments

Recently developed imaging techniques allow the mapping of the brain circuits and chemical systems believed responsible for a range of mood abnormalities including depression and bipolar disorder, and hold promise for improved treatments, scientists say.

They spoke today at a press conference involving presenters from symposia sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health ( NIMH ), a part of the National Institutes of Health, during the American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting here.

"These studies contribute new information about how the brain malfunctions in depression and bipolar disorder, what goes wrong with brain chemicals, and where in the brain the problems arise," says Ellen Leibenluft, MD, of NIMH. "We find that the brain systems involved and the exact nature of the difficulties, differs among patients, even when those patients have similar symptoms. Eventually, data like these will allow us to develop more individualized and targeted treatments for these illnesses."

Charting Brain Systems for Major Depression
Major depressive disorder ( MDD ) is an illness with high prevalence in the population, yet its underlying biological mechanisms are complex, with genetic and environmental factors influencing each other and leading to varying levels of vulnerability and resiliency.

New studies of two brain chemical systems thought to be involved in the modulation and response to stressful events finds that both are altered in untreated patients with MDD. "Dysregulation of these systems is present in patients diagnosed with MDD and we are studying their relationship with specific characteristics of the illness, such as severity and treatment response," says Jon-Kar Zubieta, MD, PhD, of the University of Michigan.

READ MORE @ PRESSZOOM

Friday, May 9, 2008

Clues to Role of Brain Development as Risk for Mental Disorders May Also Lead to Better Treatments

Increasing evidence points to links between the timing and growth rates of specific brain areas in the young brain and the likelihood of developing a wide range of mental disorders later in life, say researchers convened by the National Institute of Mental Health ( NIMH ), a part of the National Institutes of Health. Included among these mental disorders are autism, anxiety, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, substance abuse, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD ).

"Most psychiatric disorders, including those with adult onset such as schizophrenia, are increasingly recognized as being neurodevelopmental in origin," says NIMH's Jay Giedd, MD. "A greater understanding of the specifics of brain development, and where the path of development goes awry in illnesses, may be a key factor in devising better therapies."

The scientists spoke today at a press conference during the American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting being held here.

A twenty-year ongoing longitudinal neuroimaging project of healthy children and adolescents being conducted at NIMH's child psychiatry branch shows the relationship between dynamic brain changes and the emergence of several classes of psychiatric disorders during adolescence.

The data set, which tracks participants aged three to 30 years every two years, consists of more than 6,000 magnetic resonance imaging ( MRI ) scans from 2,000 subjects. About half are from typically developing subjects and half have disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and childhood-onset schizophrenia. "The large number of typically developing subjects serves not only to provide a yardstick from which to assess developmental deviations but also because understanding the timing, mechanisms, and influences of healthy brain development may illuminate paths to intervention in illness," says Giedd, who oversees the study.

READ MORE @ MEDIA-NEWSWIRE

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Unraveling the Link Between Genes and Environment

New studies in the field of epigenetics -- which looks at how environmental factors can change gene function without altering DNA sequence -- are identifying new molecular targets that may lead to improved drug treatment of depression, scientists report.

Epigenetics plays a major role in depression and the actions of antidepressants.

"The mechanisms that precipitate depression, such as stress, are incompletely understood," Dr. Eric Nestler, of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, said in a prepared statement. "One mystery of the disease is its long-lasting nature and delayed response to antidepressant treatment. This persistence is thought to be influenced by slowly developing but stable adaptations, which might include epigenetic regulation."

Nestler held a symposium Monday on epigenetics at the American Psychiatric Association annual meeting, in Washington, D.C. A number of scientists outlined their research on epigenetics and depression. The symposium was sponsored by the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health.

READ MORE @ WASHINGTON POST

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Antipsychotic Prescribing For Children Has Risen Sharply

A research team set out to investigate the epidemiologic features of antibiotic prescribing to patients under the age of 18 by GPs (general practitioners, primary care doctors) in Great Britain. They gathered data from the UK General Practice Research Database, involving 384 participating general practices, to identify how many child/adolescent patients were prescribed at least one antipsychotic drug between the beginning of 1992 to the end of 2005. They calculated age-specific prevalences and incidences of antipsychotic prescribing.

You can read about this in the journal Pediatrics.

READ MORE @ MEDICAL NEWS TODAY

Monday, May 5, 2008

Common Medications Could Cause Physical Impairment in the Elderly

Two new studies show that anticholinergics, a commonly prescribed group of drugs, may cause elderly people to "slow down" in their daily physical activities.

The two reports from researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine support findings released a few weeks ago that anticholinergic drugs -- which treat a variety of diseases and conditions, including acid reflux, Parkinson's disease and urinary incontinence -- may cause older people to lose their thinking skills more quickly than those who don't take the medicines.

Anticholinergic drugs work by stopping acetylcholine, a chemical that enhances communication between nerve cells in the brain, from binding to its receptors in nerve cells.

In the first Wake Forest study, older adults taking anticholinergics became more likely to walk more slowly and to need help in other daily activities.

READ MORE @ WASHINGTON POST

Sunday, May 4, 2008

Nursing homes undertreat dementia patients' pain

Nursing home residents with dementia appear to be less likely to receive pain medication than other residents, even though they have just as many painful health conditions, a new study suggests.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill evaluated data for 551 residents of six nursing homes across the state and found that residents who were cognitively impaired were less likely to receive regular doses of pain medication or to receive pain drugs at all.

This was despite the fact that dementia patients and cognitively healthy patients had similar rates of often-painful conditions like cancer, osteoarthritis and degeneration in the spinal disks.

Pain medications are often prescribed to be taken "as needed," the researchers note. The findings suggest that more nursing home residents with dementia should be on regularly scheduled doses of pain medication, they report in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.

READ MORE @ REUTERS

Saturday, May 3, 2008

Do antidepressants help patients with back pain?

That depends on which study you read and what kind of back pain you have.
more stories like this

In a review of 10 studies on back pain and antidepressants published recently by the Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that reviews medical studies, Australian researchers found no clear evidence that antidepressants are more effective than sugar pills in helping patients with low-back pain. The finding is somewhat perplexing because, as the Australian researchers themselves noted, there is evidence that antidepressants can help with other types of chronic pain.

The researchers' findings also conflict with recent guidelines issued by the American Pain Society, which does recommend antidepressants for back pain, said Dr. Roger Chou, director of the guideline program. But he cautioned in an e-mail that antidepressants are not recommended as the "first line" treatment for low back pain partly because they can have side effects and partly because the benefit of antidepressants for back pain is "small to moderate."

READ MORE @ BOSTON GLOBE

Friday, May 2, 2008

Antidepressant Found To Alleviate Symptoms Of Irritable Bowel Syndrome In Adolescents

Researchers at Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA have found that low-dose antidepressant therapy can significantly improve the overall quality of life for adolescents suffering from irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS. The syndrome affects 6 percent of middle school students and 14 percent of high school kids in the United States.

he study, published in the May issue of the peer-reviewed Journal of Pediatrics, is the first of its kind to look at the effects of amitriptyline, a tricyclic antidepressant, in the pediatric IBS population, researchers said.

The research was conducted between 2002 and 2005 and involved 33 newly diagnosed IBS patients, including 24 girls, between the ages of 12 and 18.

Irritable bowel syndrome causes discomfort in the abdomen, along with diarrhea, constipation or both. Currently, there is no cure, and treatments only lessen the symptoms.

READ MORE @ SCIENCE DAILY

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Prozac may slow MS - Dutch study

The popular antidepressant Prozac may help slow multiple sclerosis, according to a Dutch study showing that people who took the drug had fewer of the brain lesions that are a hallmark of the incurable disease.
The findings were from a small study but justified further examination in those afflicted with MS, the researchers reported in one of the British Medical Journal's specialist journals on Thursday.
"This proof-of-concept study shows that (the drug) tends to reduce the formation of new enhancing lesions in patients with MS," Jop Mostert, a neurologist at the University Medical Center Groeningen in the Netherlands, and colleagues wrote.
There is no cure for MS, which affects more than 1 million people worldwide. It is twice as common in women than men with symptoms often first appearing between the ages of 20 and 40.
The disease can be a mild illness in some people while causing permanent disability in others. Symptoms may include numbness or weakness in one or more limbs, partial or complete loss of vision, tingling or pain, electric-shock sensations with certain head movements, tremors and an unsteady gait.

READ MORE @ THE GUARDIAN