Major Depressive Disorder News and Research

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Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a psychiatric condition characterized by depressed mood or anhedonia (significant loss of interest or pleasure). The condition affects more than 15.7 million adults and approximately 3 million adolescents (aged 13 to 17 years) in the USA each year.

Treatment of child depression most successful with Prozac and cognitive-behavior therapy combination

A new study by researchers at the UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, have found that treatment of child depression was most successful when a combination of Prozac and cognitive-behavior therapy was applied.

18 Aug 2004

Approval of Cymbalta for treatment of major depressive disorder

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Cymbalta® (duloxetine HCl; pronounced SIM-BALL-TA), judging it a safe and effective treatment for major depressive disorder, Eli Lilly and Company have announced.

5 Aug 2004

Overactive brain circuit brings on depression

A brain imaging study by the NIH's National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has found that an emotion-regulating brain circuit is overactive in people prone to depression – even when they are not depressed.

5 Aug 2004

Texas Medication Algorithm Project guidelines produce improvements in patients with major depressive disorder

Results from a multiyear study of severely depressed patients treated according to guidelines established by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas showed a significant improvement in patients' symptoms and medical outcomes.

5 Jul 2004

People who suffer from severe depression have more nerve cells in the part of the brain that controls emotion

Studies of postmortem brains of patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD) showed a 31 percent greater than average number of nerve cells in the portion of the thalamus involved with emotional regulation.

2 Jul 2004

FDA finds gepirone ER “not approvable” as a treatment for Major Depressive Disorder

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has determined that Organon’s gepirone ER New Drug Application is “not approvable.”

25 Jun 2004

Compulsive hoarding study could improve diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric disorders

A PET imaging study conducted at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute indicates the neurobiology of America's estimated 1 million compulsive hoarders differs significantly from people with other obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms. The findings indicate that different medications could improve treatment success.

2 Jun 2004

Chromium picolinate supplementation reduced carbohydrate cravings and atypical depression

Results of a new double-blind, placebo-controlled human clinical trial found that daily supplementation with chromium picolinate significantly reduced some key symptoms of atypical depression.

2 Jun 2004

Patients with leukemia or lymphoma who undergo hematopoietic-cell transplantation and survive can expect full recovery to take 3-5 years

Patients with leukemia or lymphoma who undergo hematopoietic-cell transplantation (HCT) and survive can expect full recovery to take 3-5 years, according to a study published in the May 19 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

19 May 2004

Increasing number of cases of wet age-related macular degeneration

Nearly all retina specialists are greatly alarmed by the increasing number of cases of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of severe vision loss and blindness in people over the age of 50, and believe the disease will have a serious impact on the public.

11 May 2004

Cymbalta helped patients with depression feel better

Patients treated successfully with 60 mg per day of the investigational antidepressant Cymbalta® (duloxetine hydrochloride), were less likely to have their emotional and physical symptoms of depression return than those who stopped taking medication after beginning to feel better

3 May 2004

Counseling eases the depression of people caring for a loved one with the devastating brain disease

The spouses of Alzheimer's patients often experience extraordinary psychological stress, but a new study by NYU School of Medicine researchers shows that a six-session counseling and long-term support program substantially eases the depression of people caring for a loved one with the devastating brain disease, and that the mental health benefits apparently are long lasting.

1 May 2004

Study shows Levitra enhances patients' self-esteem by improving erections

The first clinical study to evaluate LEVITRA™ (vardenafil HCl) in men with mild Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and erectile dysfunction (ED) showed LEVITRA produced statistically significant improvements over baseline in all measures of erectile function (EF) and depression/self-esteem. In the study, men taking Levitra were nearly three times more likely to report improved erections than men taking placebo.

24 Mar 2004