Depression News and Research

Latest Depression News and Research

Regular exercise slows down onset of dementia and Alzheimer's

According to a new study published this week regular exercise can slow down the onset of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

17 Jan 2006

Drugs and electroconvulsive therapy best treatment for severe depression

According to a new study, despite the fact that over the last decade, two treatments which are often castigated in the media, and have raised both public and professional concern, antidepressants such as Prozac and Seroxat, and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), remain the most effective treatments for moderate to severe depression.

16 Jan 2006

FDA warns diet drugs contain Prozac and Librium

The FDA has issued a warning to consumers that diet pills from Brazil have been found to contain active drug ingredients which are possibly harmful.

16 Jan 2006

Having kids bad for mental well being

A new study in the U.S. says that being a parent may not be as fulfilling an experience as might be expected and in fact parenthood does not appear to offer any mental health benefit for the individuals involved.

16 Jan 2006

Risk for depression similar in men and women

Men and women may share more similarities than previously thought when it comes to the risk factors for major depression, according to a new study by Virginia Commonwealth University researchers.

10 Jan 2006

Caring for cancer carers: Are women's needs different from men's?

A cancer diagnosis can be a devastating experience for the person concerned, but for families and loved ones, who later become the primary source of support and care, it can be a stressful, life changing experience.

10 Jan 2006

Specialised care for early psychosis

A new study has found that specialised care for early psychosis can achieve better outcomes than standard care.

10 Jan 2006

Psychiatric patients who smoke

An editorial in the January 2006 issue of the Psychiatric Bulletin reviews the evidence for the effectiveness of gene-based smoking cessation packages, and asks whether they are appropriate for psychiatric patients.

10 Jan 2006

Differences found in rates of mental illnesses between rural and urban areas

There are small but statistically significant differences in rates of common mental disorders between people living in urban and rural areas, according to a new study published in the January 2006 issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry.

10 Jan 2006

Depression frequent and highly persistent in 85-plus

Amongst the oldest old (85-plus), depression is frequent and highly persistent, according to a new study from The Netherlands.

10 Jan 2006

Advances in treatment of borderline personality disorder

An editorial in the January 2006 issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry concludes that mental health professionals should be optimistic about improvements in the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD).

10 Jan 2006

Talking about postnatal depression

Ongoing media and community campaigns have helped to destigmatise, and inform about, a wide range of mental illnesses. However new Macquarie University research into postnatal depression has revealed that the identification and uptake of treatment for this disorder remains a serious problem among sufferers.

10 Jan 2006

New research reveals a protein involved in lifting depression

Paul Greengard, Ph.D.,a Nobel Laureate researcher says that mice deficient in a protein, called p11, display depression-like behaviours, while those with sufficient amounts behave as if they have been treated with antidepressants.

9 Jan 2006

Psychotropic drug prescriptions for teenagers has skyrocketed

Psychotropic drug prescriptions for teenagers skyrocketed 250 percent between 1994 and 2001, rising particularly sharply after 1999, when the federal government allowed direct-to-consumer advertising and looser promotion of off-label use of prescription drugs

6 Jan 2006

Genetic risk factors for depression greater in women

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have found that genes contribute more strongly to the risk of depression in women than in men, and that there may be some genetic factors that are operating uniquely in one sex and not in the other.

5 Jan 2006

Gulf War Syndrome more prevalent in first Persian Gulf War veterans

Comparing veterans deployed in the first Persian Gulf War and veterans deployed elsewhere at the same time has revealed veterans who served in the Persian Gulf have nearly twice the prevalence of chronic multi-symptom illness (CMI), a cluster of symptoms similar to a set of conditions often called Gulf War Syndrome.

5 Jan 2006