Articles related to DEPRESSION

The analysis found similar benefits for most nonpharmacologic treatments and antidepressants as first-step treatments in MDD. As 1st-line therapy, cognitive behavioral therapies (CBTs) were similar in response to second-generation antidepressants (SGAs) in terms of benefit and remission rates, but discontinuation for adverse events was higher with SGAs. The complementary and alternative medicine interventions St. Johns Wart and acupuncture were also similar to SGAs in terms of response and remission. However, the combination of acupuncture and SGAs yielded higher remission rates. Exercise was also similar to SGAs in remission rates; adding exercise to SGAs gave no added benefit. Antidepressants had a higher risk of discontinuation because of adverse events. For second-step therapies, different switching and augmentation strategies provided similar symptomatic relief.

Clinically significant anxiolytic and antidepressant benefits were seen in anxious depression patients after TMS in all samples, with average reductions in GAD-7 and PHQ-9 scores of 50% or more. The PHQ-9 scores for both the anxious and nonanxious depression groups improved equally. The worried group, however, scored higher both at the beginning of the study and after TMS, leading to significantly lower categorical rates of response and remission in depressive symptoms. The shift in anxiety and depressive symptoms substantially correlated among individuals who had anxious depression.

The American Journal of Psychiatry presents this review of the most compelling articles that were covered in 2022: The Molecular and Cellular Alterations That Underpin Psychiatric Illnesses Shared and Distinct Neurobiological Mechanisms of PTSD Cognitive Deficits in Long-Term Cannabis Users Longitudinal Outcomes of Duration of Untreated Psychosis Accelerating TMS in the Treatment of Depression Infant Brain Development, Fragile X Syndrome, and Autism Spectrum Disorder Combining Computational Modeling and Postmortem Human Brain Studies to Uncover Synaptic Variability Contributions to Cortical Gamma Oscillation From the AJP Residents’ Journal: Identity and Stigma

High functioning depression is an oversimplified label for someone who effectively hides their persistent depression and seems to be managing their life well. The proper diagnosis is probably dysthymia. Dysthymia is difficult to detect until it intensifies into a major depressive episode. Asking questions about mood, sleep, medication and duration of depressive symptoms can help the clinician achieve a proper diagnosis.

Misuse of prescription stimulants was associated with prior year treatment for depression, ADHD, and substance use disorder. Identified risk factors for stimulant misuse include use of prescription drugs in the past month (5.5 times increased risk) and use of illegal drugs in the past month (8 times higher risk).

Because many BP-I patients present with depressive rather than manic symptoms, if a careful evaluation for past manic episodes is missed, it can easily result in an incorrect diagnosis of MDD.