Publications - Depression

Anxiety, irritability may precede depression in high-risk teens, by Lisa Rapaport , Reuters, Dec 9 2016.

“When parents have a history of depression, teens are at greater risk for developing the disorder themselves, and signs of being irritable, anxious and fearful may precede a first episode of depression, a recent study suggests. Other things, like low mood and disruptive behavior, don’t appear to come before the onset of major depression for teens with a family risk for the disease, the study also found...The most common risk factor for early onset depression is having a mother or father with a history of the disease, researchers note in JAMA Psychiatry. ”

Pets Help People Manage The Pain Of Serious Mental Illness, by Erin Ross , NPR, Dec 9 2016.

“Any pet owner will tell you that their animal companions comfort and sustain them when life gets rough. This may be especially true for people with serious mental illness, a study finds. When people with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder were asked who or what helped them manage the condition, many said it was pets that helped the most.  [...] Many people with serious mental illness live at home and have limited contact with the health care system, says Helen Brooks, a mental health researcher at University of Manchester in the United Kingdom and the lead author on the study, which was published Friday in the journal BMC Psychiatry. So they're doing a lot of the work of managing their conditions. ”

Study: Vast Majority Of People Who Are Depressed Do Not Seek Help, by Maanvi Singh , NPR, Dec 2 2016.

“An estimated 350 million people are affected by depression, and the vast majority of them don't get treatment for their condition either due to stigma or a lack of knowledge, according to a study of more than 50,000 people in 21 countries. The study was led by Graham Thornicroft, a professor of psychiatry at King's College London.  He and his team of researchers from King's College London, Harvard Medical School and the World Health Organization found that in the poorest countries, one in 27 people with depression received minimally adequate care for their condition. Even in the richest countries, only one in five people with depression sought care. The data was published Thursday in The British Journal of Psychiatry. ”

Anxiety, Depression Tied to Teens’ Physical Problems, by Rick Nauert, PhD, Psych Central, Nov 29 2016.

“European researchers have identified patterns in youth linking mental problems to physical disorders such as arthritis and skin diseases. Psychologists at the University of Basel and Ruhr University Bochum determined that arthritis and diseases of the digestive system are more common in youth who have suffered from depression. Moreover, when youth experience anxiety issues, they tend to be followed by skin diseases...If physical and mental disorders systematically co-occur from an early age, there is a risk that the sick child or adolescent will suffer from untoward developments. ”

Sexist men have psychological problems, by Sarah Kaplan, The Washington Post, Nov 22 2016.

“Researchers identified 11 norms considered to be “traditionally masculine” — desire to win, need for emotional control, risk-taking, violence, dominance, sexual promiscuity or playboy behavior, self-reliance, primacy of work, power over women, disdain for homosexuality and pursuit of status — and looked to see whether they were associated with particular mental health outcomes. In general, the men who stuck more strongly to these norms were more likely to experience problems such as depression, stress, body image issues, substance abuse and negative social functioning. They were also less likely to turn to counseling to help deal with those problems. The effect was particularly strong for men who emphasized playboy behavior, power over women and self-reliance. ”

Teen Stalking Victims at Higher Risk for Depression, Risky Behaviors, by Janice Wood, Psych Central, Nov 19 2016.

“A new study has found that 14 percent of girls and 13 percent of boys are victims of stalking. These teens are also more likely to report symptoms linked to depression, as well as risky behavior, including binge drinking and sexting, according to the study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. ”

This might be why depression is rising among teen girls, by Jacqueline Howard, CNN, Nov 14 2016.

“There has been a significant climb in the prevalence of major depression among adolescents and young adults in recent years -- and the troubling trend may be strongest in teenage girls, according to a new study...'Although a recent federal task force recommended screening for depression in young people 12 to 18 years of age, screening is far from universal,' said Dr. Mark Olfson, a professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center and a co-author of the study. 'The new study highlights that most adolescents with depression do not receive treatment for their symptoms and underscores the need for increased attention to this condition.' ”

Changing the clocks makes people depressed, study finds, by Megan Scudellari, Boston Globe, Nov 4 2016.

“When you wake up this Sunday, it will probably be a bit brighter than usual, and the day will plunge into darkness much earlier in the afternoon — at 4:31 pm. Welcome to the return of standard time. The extra hour of sleep gained during the switch from daylight saving time to standard time feels great. But the time change overall may negatively affect the mental health of some people, according to a new study in the journal Epidemiology. Researchers in Denmark have documented an 8 percent increase in the number of people diagnosed with depression in the month following the time change. ”

Can Mental Illness Be Prevented In The Womb?, by Bret Stetka , NPR, Oct 22 2016.

“Questions about whether ADHD might arise a few years down the road or whether schizophrenia could crop up in young adulthood tend to be overshadowed by more immediate parental anxieties. As a friend with a newborn daughter recently fretted over lunch, "I'm just trying not to drop her!"  Yet much as pediatricians administer childhood vaccines to guard against future infections, some psychiatrists now are thinking about how to shift their treatment-centric discipline toward one that also deals in early prevention. ”

Violence, Drugs, Mental Illness May Account for Half of Maternal Deaths, by Janice Wood, Psych Central, Oct 16 2016.

“Intimate partner violence, substance use and mental illness may be as threatening to health and survival during pregnancy as medical issues, according to a new study...Although substance use, serious mental illness and intimate partner violence may also be exacerbated by pregnancy and are known to worsen perinatal outcomes, deaths specifically due to these causes are not included in current definitions of U.S. maternal mortality, the researchers noted. ”

Study links antidepressants in pregnancy with language disorders, by Susan Scutti, CNN, Oct 12 2016.

“Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, known as SSRIs, are the most common type of antidepressants prescribed to pregnant women. Yet a new study indicates that when taken during pregnancy, the drugs are associated with a higher risk of language disorders, including dyslexia, in offspring. The children of women who took SSRIs while pregnant have a 37% greater risk of speech or language disorders compared with the children of depressed but unmedicated mothers, the researchers say. ”

Employers Across the Globe Must Take Pro-Active Approach to Manage Depression, by Rick Nauert PhD, Psych Central, Sep 28 2016.

“New data released from the London School of Economics shows that workplace depression is a major issue across different cultures and economies...Lead researcher Dr Sara Evans-Lacko says the enormous costs of depression due to absence and loss of productivity are set to increase unless governments and employers make it a priority. ”

Bad Experiences on Social Media Ups Risk of Depression in Young Adults, by Rick Nauert, PhD, Psych Central, Sep 9 2016.

“Brown University researchers discovered negative Facebook interactions includes including bullying, meanness, misunderstandings or unwanted contacts significantly increase the risk of depression for young adults, even when investigators accounted for possible complicating factors... 'There is research that shows that people tend to feel more entitled to bully online than they do in person or engage in unwanted contact online than they would in person,' Rosenthal said. 'In some ways it’s higher risk. It’s worth people being aware of that risk.' ”

Depression Treatment Often Doesn't Go To Those Most In Need, by Zhai Yun Tan, NPR, Aug 29 2016.

“Most Americans who screen positive for depression don't receive treatment, a study finds, while most who did receive treatment don't appear to have the disorder. "Over the last several years there has been an increase in prescription of antidepressants," says Mark Olfson, professor of psychiatry at the Columbia University Medical Center and lead author of the study, which was published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine. "In that context, many people assumed that undertreatment of depression is no longer a common problem." But Olfson found the opposite to be true after analyzing data from Medical Expenditure Panel Surveys in 2012 and 2013 that asked people if they had been screened for depression. Of the 46,417 adults surveyed, 8.4 percent answered in ways that suggested they had depression, but only 28.7 percent of the people who appeared depressed received any treatment for it. ”

Depression Linked to Heart Disease in Blacks, by Rick Nauert, PhD, Psych Central, Aug 15 2016.

“New research suggests that symptoms of depression lead to a greater risk of heart disease in older black adults, but not in white adults...'These findings suggest that efforts to improve detection and treatment of depression in African-Americans may have the added of value of reducing their risk of heart disease,' said co-author Dr. Amanda Sonnega. ”