Author Interviews, BMJ, Depression, Weight Research / 30.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Rafael Gafoor Research Associate Kings College London  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Obesity and weight gain are global public health problems, with approximately 60% of UK adults currently overweight or obese. Depression is common in people who are severely obese and the rate of antidepressant prescribing is increasing, which could have potential impact on public health. However, little research has been reported on the impact of widespread antidepressant treatment on weight gain. So a UK based research team, led by Rafael Gafoor at King’s College London, set out to investigate the association between the use of antidepressants and weight gain. The researchers analysed body weight and body mass measurement data from the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) for over 300,000 adults with an average age of 51, whose body mass index (BMI) had been recorded three or more times during GP consultations from 2004-2014. Participants were grouped according to their BMI (from normal weight to severely obese) and whether or not they had been prescribed an antidepressant in a given year. Participants were then monitored for a total of 10 years. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Emory, Heart Disease, JAMA / 22.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Viola Vaccarino, MD, PhD Department of Epidemiology and Division of Cardiology Professor, Department of Medicine Emory University School of Medicine Atlanta, Georgia  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Previous studies have shown that people with depression tend to have lower heart rate variability (HRV), an index of autonomic nervous system dysregulation derived by monitoring the electrocardiogram over time, usually for 24 hours. Other literature, however, has pointed out that autonomic dysregulation (as indexed by reduced HRV) may also cause depression. Thus, the direction of the association between reduced HRV and depression still remains unclear. In addition, these two characteristics could share common pathophysiology, making shared familial background and genetic factors potential determinants of this association. (more…)
Author Interviews, BMJ, Depression, Exercise - Fitness / 17.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Prof. Sarah E Lamb,  MSc, MA, MCSP, Grad Dip Statistics, DPhil Centre for Rehabilitation Research and Centre for Statistics in Medicine Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics Rheumatology & Musculoskeletal Sciences Botnar Research Centre, University of Oxford, Oxford MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Scientists and clinicians have considered the possibility that higher intensity aerobic and muscle strength training might have a beneficial effect in preventing dementia or slowing the progression of cognitive impairment in those who have dementia. The hypothesis has come mostly from animal research. The main findings of our research which used a large sample and high quality methods was that higher intensity exercise, whilst possible, did not slow cognitive impairment. Neither did it have an impact on the functional and behavioural outcomes for people with dementia. It was a substantial commitment for people to participate in the programmes, although many enjoyed the experience and their physical fitness improved. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Endocrinology, JAMA, Mental Health Research, Thyroid Disease / 14.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Thyroid gland Wikipedia imageTeja Grömer PD Dr. med. Habil Facharzt für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie Lehrbefugter der Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg im Fach Psychiatrie Bamberg  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? 1) I had seen hundreds of clinical cases with combined depression and anxiety and noted end of 2015 that most (far more than 50%) from the subjective clinical impression were associated with autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT) 2) Autoimmune thyroiditis on the mental side leads to specific symptoms, exhaustion, tachycardia, restlessness. 3) I thus decided to do a systematic review and meta-analysis.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Exercise - Fitness / 13.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “gym” by FooJFoo is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 3.0Mr. Brett R. Gordon, M.Sc. Postgraduate researcher Physical Education and Sport Sciences Department University of Limerick, Ireland.  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: Depression is prevalent, burdensome, and often comorbid mood disorder that is associated with other poor health outcomes. Exercise training interventions have demonstrated comparable efficacy for depressive symptoms to frontline treatments, such as antidepressant medications and behavioral therapies. However, the evidence to date has primarily focused on findings from studies of aerobic exercise training like jogging, running, and cycling. Our work is the first quantitative summary of the effects of resistance exercise training (RET), or weight lifting and strength training, on depressive symptoms, and the influence of variables like participant characteristics, features of the RET, and the methods that were used in studies on the antidepressant effects of RET. The main finding was that resistance exercise training significantly reduced depressive symptoms among adults regardless of their health status, the total prescribed volume of RET (e.g., how much the participants were supposed to exercise), or whether or not strength was significantly improved by the RET intervention.  (more…)
Author Interviews, Critical Care - Intensive Care - ICUs, Depression, Pediatrics / 11.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Karen Fratantoni, M.D., M.P.H. Pediatrician and lead study author Children’s National Health System MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: We looked at the prevalence of depressive symptoms at NICU discharge and at six months after discharge among 125 parents randomized to the control group of a larger PCORI-funded trial of peer-to-peer support after NICU discharge. Determining factors associated with parental depressive symptoms at NICU discharge may help to identify at-risk parents who could benefit from mental health support. (more…)
Author Interviews, CDC, Depression, Pediatrics / 04.05.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Rebecca H. Bitsko, PhD National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities(https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/index.html) (NCBDDD) is committed to helping children who have mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. Anxiety and depression are both internalizing mental disorders that often start during childhood, and that frequently occur together. In this study, we show that more than 1 in 20, or 2.6 million, US children aged 6-17 had a current diagnosis of anxiety or depression, by parent report, in 2011-12. We also found an increase of diagnosed anxiety in these children from 1 in 28 in 2007 to 1 in 24 in 2011-12. Further, in 2011-12, approximately 1 in 5 children with current anxiety or depression did not receive mental health treatment in the past year. Children with current anxiety or depression were more likely than those without to have:
  • Another mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder such as ADHD, learning disability, or speech or language problems
  • School problems
  • Parents who report high levels of stress and frustration with parenting
  • Unmet medical and mental health service needs
(more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Eating Disorders, JAMA, Mental Health Research, Pediatrics / 13.04.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Tracy Vaillancourt, Ph.D. Full Professor and Canada Research Chair Children’s Mental Health and Violence Prevention Counselling Psychology, Faculty of Education School of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences University of Ottawa MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Although there have been a few studies that have looked at the relation between being bullied and disordered eating, most studies have looked at it from the perspective of does being bullied lead to disordered eating and does depressive symptoms mediate (i.e., explain) the link. We wanted to look more closely at how bullying, disordered eating, and depression were related over time among teenagers by examining all possible pathways. Another novel aspect of our study was the focus on disordered eating behaviour only (e.g., vomiting, using diet pills, binge eating). Most previous work has examined behaviour and thoughts together, but because disordered eating thoughts are so common (termed normative discontent; e.g., fear of fat, dissatisfaction with body shape or size), particularly among girls and women, we wanted to focus on behaviour, which is more problematic in terms of physical and psychiatric health. (more…)
Allergan, Author Interviews, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Mental Health Research / 05.04.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. C. David Nicholson, PhD Chief R&D Officer Allergan MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this data milestone?  Response: Bipolar I depression refers to the depressive episodes of bipolar I disorder, the overarching brain and behavioral disorder. People with bipolar I disorder can have manic and depressive episodes, as well as mixed episodes that feature both manic and depressive symptoms at the same time. Bipolar I depression typically lasts at least two weeks, and can be difficult to differentiate from major depression during diagnosis. Once diagnosed, treating bipolar depression can be difficult given the few therapies available to manage these symptoms of bipolar I disorder. Additionally, patients with bipolar disorder may experience shifts from depression to mania or mania to depression as well as mixed states. More treatment options are needed so that physicians can find a therapy that will treat bipolar depression effectively, while also addressing the myriad of other symptoms that patients can experience. Cariprazine is already approved for the treatment of mania and mixed episodes. With this new data, we have the potential to also treat bipolar depression, effectively addressing the full spectrum of symptoms associated with bipolar I disorder with just one medication. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Heart Disease, JAMA / 27.02.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: David Bekelman, MD, MPH  Associate Professor of Medicine and Nursing Eastern Colorado Health Care System, Department of Veterans Affairs, Denver, CO University of Colorado School of Medicine at the Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Many of the 5.8 million Americans with heart failure live with bothersome symptoms, reduced function and poor quality of life.  Improving their care is important because many people with heart failure live with these challenges for years.

This study evaluated the effect of a team intervention, Collaborative Care to Alleviate Symptoms and Adjust to Illness, also called CASA, on several aspects of quality of life in 314 patients with heart failure.  The patients, who received care at diverse health systems in Colorado, were randomized to receive usual care or usual care supplemented with the CASA intervention, which included a nurse and a social worker who collaborated with a primary care provider, cardiologist, and palliative care physician to address the patients’ needs.

The study found that the CASA intervention did not influence the primary outcome of heart failure health status, yet did improve patients’ depression and fatigue.  CASA did not influence number of patient hospitalizations or mortality. (more…)

Author Interviews, Depression, Dermatology / 09.02.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: “Young man with acne” by Sergey Sudeykin (Russian, Smolensk 1882–1946 Nyack) via The Metropolitan Museum of Art is licensed under CC0 1.0Isabelle Vallerand, Ph.D. Epidemiologist, MD Student Dept. of Community Health Sciences Cumming School of Medicine University of Calgary MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Over the past few years, there have been numerous reports that an acne drug called isotretinoin (Accutane) has been linked to psychiatric disorders. We recently published a systematic review on this topic and did not find an increased risk of psychiatric disorders among people treated with isotretinoin, so we wondered if acne itself may be contributing to mental illness. While it is well known that acne can have negative effects on mood, we wanted to assess if there was an increased risk of true clinical depression using medical records data. Therefore, we conducted the current study and found that acne increased the risk of developing clinical depression by 63% in the first year following an acne diagnosis and that this risk remained elevated for 5 years after the initial acne diagnosis. (more…)
Author Interviews, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, JAMA / 01.01.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Andre Russowsky Brunoni, MD, PhD Coordinator, Service of Interdisciplinary Neuromodulation, Laboratory of Neurosciences  Department and Institute of Psychiatry Coordinator, Interdisciplinary Center for Applied Neuromodulation, University Hospital University of São Paulo São Paulo, Brasil  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: In this study, our aim was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) as an add-on treatment for patients with bipolar depression. There are a only few treatment alternatives for bipolar depression, which often have important side effects. Thus, we wanted to evaluate the efficacy of this non-pharmacological treatment. We found that active vs. sham tDCS effected greater response and remission for patients with bipolar depression. The frequency of adverse effects was similar, including treatment-emergent affective switches. However, higher rates of skin redness were observed in the active group. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Kidney Disease, UT Southwestern / 08.11.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Susan Hedayati MD Yin Quan-Yuen Distinguished Professorship in Nephrology University of Texas Southwestern Dallas, Texas MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: We previously showed that Major Depression is associated with a significantly higher risk of death, dialysis initiation, and hospitalization among patients with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD). Now we show that a common antidepressant medication, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI), sertraline, does not improve depression in this patient population, a chronically ill group that is not only at significantly increased risk for developing depression but also its serious complications. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Diabetes, JAMA, Pediatrics, Pharmacology / 17.10.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Mehmet Burcu, PhD, MS Department of Pharmaceutical Health Services Research University of Maryland, Baltimore  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Antidepressants are one of the most commonly used psychotropic medication classes in U.S. youth, with serotonin reuptake inhibitors representing a large majority of total antidepressant use in youth. The most interesting finding was that the current use of serotonin reuptake inhibitors in youth was associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus, and this increased risk intensified further with the increasing duration of use and with the increasing dose. A secondary analysis also revealed that the risk of incident type 2 diabetes was most apparent in youth who used serotonin reuptake inhibitors for longer durations AND in greater daily doses. (more…)
Accidents & Violence, Alzheimer's - Dementia, Author Interviews, Depression, Geriatrics, Karolinski Institute / 11.08.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Heidi Taipale, PhD Pharm Senior Researcher School of Pharmacy, University of Eastern Finland; and Department of Clinical Neuroscience Karolinska Institutet  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Antidepressant use among older persons has been associated with an increased risk of falling and fall-related events, such as hip fractures, in previous studies. Our previous study identified risk of hip fractures in antidepressant among persons with Alzheimer’s disease. As falling is the main causal factor for head traumas and traumatic brain injuries among older persons, we hypothesized that antidepressant use could also be associated with these injuries. We utilized a nationwide cohort of 70,718 persons newly diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, identified from the Finnish registers. The risk of head injuries and traumatic brain injuries was compared between persons initiating antidepressant use and comparison persons of the same age, gender and time since they received diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease but not using antidepressants. We found a 40-percent increased risk of head injuries and 30-percent increased risk of traumatic brain injuries associated with antidepressant use. Antidepressant use was associated with a higher risk of head injuries especially at the beginning of use – during the first 30 days – but the risk persisted even longer, up to two years. The association was also confirmed in a study design comparing time periods within the same person, thus eliminating selective factors. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Gender Differences, Pediatrics / 12.07.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Jie-Yu Chuang PhD Department of Psychiatry University of Cambridge Cambridge, United Kingdom  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Men and women appear to suffer from depression differently, and this is particularly striking in adolescents. By 15 years of age, girls are twice as likely to suffer from depression as boys. There are various possible reasons for this, including body image issues, hormonal fluctuations and genetic factors, where girls are more at risk of inheriting depression. However, differences between the sexes don't just involve the risk of experiencing depression. Men are more liable to suffer from persistent depression, whereas in women depression tends to be more episodic. Compared with women, depressed men are also more likely to suffer serious consequences from their depression, such as substance abuse and suicide. Despite this, so far, most researchers have focused on depression in women, likely because it is more common. As a result, we'd like to make people more aware of the sex difference issue in depression. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, JAMA / 06.07.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Robb B. Rutledge, PhD Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research University College London London, England MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Depression is associated with deficits in how the brain responds to rewards, something the neurotransmitter dopamine is strongly implicated in. Dopamine represents what is called a reward prediction error, the difference between experienced and predicted reward. This error signal is used for learning. For example, if the outcome of a decision is better than expected, you can update your expectations using this error signal and you should expect more next time. Previous research has shown that depression reduces these signals in the brain when people are learning about the world around them. We designed a task where participants did not have to learn anything during the experiment and we found that in this situation reward prediction error signals were not affected by depression. The signals we measured in the ventral striatum, a brain area with a lot of input from the dopamine neurons, looked the same in depressed and non-depressed individuals. We also found that the emotional impacts of reward prediction errors were similar in depressed and non-depressed individuals when we eliminated the need for learning during the task in both the lab and using a smartphone experiment with 1833 participants. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, OBGYNE, Pharmacology / 19.06.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Samantha Meltzer-Brody, MD, MPH Associate Professor and Associate Chair for Faculty Development Director, Perinatal Psychiatry Program Director, Taking Care of Our Own Program Department of Psychiatry Chapel Hill, NC 2759  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: The Lancet published results from a randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 2 clinical trial with the investigational medication, brexanolone, for women with severe postpartum depression (PPD). During the study, which was conducted at multiple sites across the country, physician researchers administered brexanolone in 21 women, 10 of whom were administered a 60-hour infusion of brexanolone. The other 11 women were given a placebo. Results from the trial showed that 70 percent of participants who received the drug saw remission of their PPD symptoms within 60 hours of treatment, an effect that was maintained until the 30-day follow up. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Pharmacology / 12.06.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Greta A Bushnell, MSPH Doctoral Candidate, Department of Epidemiology UNC, Gillings School of Global Public Health MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Patients with depression may be co-prescribed a benzodiazepine at antidepressant initiation for a short period for a variety of reasons. Reasons include reducing concurrent anxiety and insomnia, reducing depression severity more quickly, and improved antidepressant continuation. However, there are concerns with benzodiazepines including dependency. As such, benzodiazepines are usually recommended for only short-term treatment. Prior to our study, little was known about a) how often new simultaneous antidepressant and benzodiazepine prescribing occurred among patients initiating antidepressant treatment for depression or b) whether new simultaneous users became long-term benzodiazepine users. In a large commercial insurance database, we identified adults aged 18-64 years with depression who initiated an antidepressant from 2001 to 2014. We found that 11% of adults simultaneously initiated benzodiazepine treatment, which increased from 6% in 2001 to a peak at 12% in 2012. We observed similar antidepressant treatment length at six months in simultaneous new users and among patients initiating antidepressants only. The majority of simultaneous new users had only one benzodiazepine prescription fill before benzodiazepine discontinuation; however, 12% were identified as long-term benzodiazepine users. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Kidney Disease / 06.06.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Kathy Aebel-Groesch, MSW,LCSW Manager, Social Work Services DaVita Inc. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Chronic pain and depression can impact quality of life and adherence to treatment regimen among patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Previous research has demonstrated that patients with ESRD experience pain and depression more frequently than the general population. From 2016, CMS has required that all eligible ESRD patients are evaluated regularly for pain and depressive symptoms. We assessed pain and depression symptom scores among patients of a large dialysis organization (LDO) over the period Mar-Oct 2016. Pain was assessed monthly by LDO nurses using the Wong-Baker pain scale (0-10). Depression screenings were conducted biannually by LDO social workers using the PHQ-2 (scale 0-6) and excluded patients with existing diagnosis of depression or bipolar disorder, cognitive impairment or language barrier, and those who were hospitalized or refused screening. A total of 688,346 pain responses from 160,626 individual patients and 223,421 depression screening responses from 158,172 patients were considered. A score of 0 (no pain) was reported for 83.5% of pain responses and 65.7% of patients had a 0 score in all pain assessments. A score of 10 (most severe pain) was reported at least once during the study period by 3.0% of patients. Patients with a pain score of 10 were more frequently female (55%) and patients on peritoneal dialysis were less likely to have a pain score of 10 than those on other modalities. A depression score of 0 (patient answered "Not at all" to both “Little interest or pleasure in doing things” and “Feeling down, depressed, or hopeless”) was reported for 69.1% of all responses and 62.6% of patients had a 0 score in all assessments; 1.8% of patients had at least one score of 6 (patient responded “Nearly every day” to both questions) and 9.7% had at least one score of 3 or more. Patients with a score of 0 were more likely to be male vs. female, HHD vs. PD or ICHD, ≥ age 70 years. The majority of ESRD patients did not report pain symptoms and, among those not excluded from screening due to an existing diagnosis of depression or other reason, the majority did not report symptoms of depression. However, routine assessment of pain and depression enables the timely identification of new or increased symptoms, thus allowing earlier implementation of interventions that may improve patient experience. The LDO has since revised its depression screening policy to remove diagnosis of depression from exclusion criteria and to administer the PHQ-9 to patients with a PHQ-2 score ≥ 3. (more…)
AHA Journals, Author Interviews, Depression, Stroke / 04.06.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Chung-Yen Lu, MD, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Sport and Health Management, Da-Yeh University, Changhua, Taiwan; Department of Chinese Medicine, Taipei Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, New Taipei, Taiwan  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Post-stroke depression is a common mood complication of patients with stroke and may deteriorate motor function and cognitive function. Acupuncture therapy is an alternative and supplementary medical care often used worldwide. Previous studies have reported that acupuncture therapy for post-stroke depression may involve multiple therapeuticeffects including treating neurological disorders and physical disabilities following stroke, which are predictors of post-stroke depression. However, population-based evaluations on the association between acupuncture treatment and prevention of post-stroke depression are rare.  (more…)
Aging, Author Interviews, Depression / 02.06.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Miranda T. Schram PhD Associate professor Department of Medicine Maastrich MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Late-life depression, also called vascular depression, is highly prevalent, recurrent and difficult to treat. Anti-depressants only relieve symptoms in about 50% of the patients. So we urgently need new treatment targets for this disease. In this study we found that microvascular dysfunction, irrespective if you measure this by biomarkers in the blood or in the brain, is associated with an increased risk for depression. Moreover, we found evidence from longitudinal studies that microvascular dysfunction, at least of the brain, may actually be a cause of depression. To investigate this, we undertook a meta-analyses of data from over 40,000 individuals of whom over 9,000 had a depression. (more…)
Author Interviews, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, Pediatrics / 27.05.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Antony Loebel, M.D. Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer Sunovion, Head of Global Clinical Development Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Group MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? In the six-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, 347 children and adolescents (10 to 17 years of age) with bipolar depression received once-daily LATUDA flexibly dosed (20-80 mg/day) or placebo.The Phase 3 clinical study met its primary endpoint, showing statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in symptoms compared to placebo. LATUDA was generally well tolerated, with minimal effects on weight and metabolic parameters. The primary efficacy endpoint was change from baseline to week 6 on the Children Depression Rating Scale, Revised (CDRS-R) total score. LATUDA was associated with statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in bipolar depression symptoms compared to placebo, based on CDRS-R total score (-21.0 vs. -15.3; effect size = 0.45; p<0.0001) and CGI-BP-S score for depression (-1.49 vs. -1.05; effect size = 0.44; p<0.001). LATUDA also demonstrated statistically significant improvement on secondary efficacy endpoints. The most common treatment-emergent adverse events reported for LATUDA compared to placebo were nausea (16% vs. 5.8%), somnolence (9.1% vs. 4.7%), weight gain (6.9% vs. 1.7%), vomiting (6.3% vs. 3.5%), dizziness (5.7% vs. 4.7%) and insomnia (5.1% vs. 2.3%). LATUDA was associated with no increases in fasting glucose or lipids, and minimal increase in mean weight vs. placebo (+0.74 kg vs. +0.44 kg). (more…)
Alzheimer's - Dementia, Author Interviews, Depression, JAMA / 18.05.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Archana Singh-Manoux, PhD Research Professor (Directeur de Recherche) Epidemiology of ageing & age-related diseases INSERM  France Honorary Professor University College London, UK  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Depressive symptoms are common in dementia patients. Previous studies, based on older adults, show depressive symptoms in late life to be associated with an increased risk of dementia. These studies do not allow conclusions to be drawn on the causal nature of the association between depressive symptoms and dementia. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Mental Health Research, Neurological Disorders, NIH / 03.05.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Ronald Cannon, Ph.D. Staff scientist at NIH’s National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The protein pump, P-glycoprotein, is a major obstacle to the delivery of therapeutic drugs across the blood-brain barrier and into the central nervous system (CNS). During the last 10 years, our laboratory has studied the regulation of P-glycoprotein with the hope of treating CNS diseases. MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings? Response: Our most recent finding shows that the antidepressant, amitriptyline, suppresses P-glycoprotein pump activity. The discovery is significant because P-glycoprotein restricts most CNS targeted drugs from entering the brain. If fully translatable to human patients, suppression of P-glycoprotein could allow higher levels of CNS therapeutic drugs to reach their intended target. (more…)
Author Interviews, Autism, Depression, JAMA, OBGYNE, Pediatrics / 19.04.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Simone Vigod, MD, MSc, FRCPC Psychiatrist and Lead, Reproductive Life Stages Program Women’s Mental Health Program Women’s College Hospital Toronto, ON MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Depression is one of the most common problems that can complicate a pregnancy. Untreated, or incompletely treated, it can be associated with significant harm to mother and child. While psychotherapies alone may be effective for women with mild (or even moderate) severity symptoms, sometimes antidepressant medication is required. In these cases, the benefits of treatment must be weighed against potential risks. Previous research suggested that there may be an increased risk for autism in children exposed to antidepressant medication during pregnancy. However, previous studies were limited in their ability to account for other potential causes of autism in their analyses. In our study, we used several different strategies to try to compare children whose pregnancy exposures were very similar, except for exposure to an antidepressant. The main finding was that after using these strategies, there was no longer a statistically significant association between in-utero antidepressant exposure and autism. (more…)
AstraZeneca, Author Interviews, Autism, Boehringer Ingelheim, Depression, Eli Lilly, J&J-Janssen, JAMA, Merck, OBGYNE / 17.04.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Florence Gressier MD PhD Insermk Department of psychiatry CHU de Bicêtrem Le Kremlin Bicêtre France MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Results from recent studies have suggested an increased risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) in children exposed to antidepressants in utero. We performed a systematic review of and a meta-analysis of published studies to assess the association between ASDs and fetal exposure to antidepressants during pregnancy for each trimester of pregnancy and preconception. Our systematic review and meta-analysis suggests a significant association between increased ASD risk and maternal use of antidepressants during pregnancy; however, it appears to be more consistent during the preconception period than during each trimester. In addition, the association was weaker when controlled for past maternal mental illness. Maternal psychiatric disorders in treatment before pregnancy rather than antenatal exposure to antidepressants could have a major role in the risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Genetic Research / 06.04.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Najaf Amin, PhD Erasmus University Medical Center Netherlands MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Identifying genetic risk factors for depression has not been easy. Over a decade of genetic research did not yield a single replicable genetic factor for depression. It was only recently that 15 common genetic variants mostly in the non-coding parts of the genome were identified through a large genome-wide association study performed by 23andMe. All of these variants add a very small risk to depression individually (odds ratio < 1.05). These common variants cannot explain the cases that have a family history of depression. Our hypothesis is that such familial cases are enriched for variants that are rare, lie in the coding region of the genome and thus have a large effect on depression. Such variants are enriched in families and isolated populations and therefore have a higher chance of being discovered compared to more cosmopolitan populations. Through gene-based analysis of rare coding variants we have identified a novel gene NKPD1 that may be relevant for depression. Further, we have noticed that the more deleterious the effect of the variant is on the protein, the larger the effect is on depressive symptoms. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression / 04.04.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Scott T. Aaronson, M.D Psychiatrist, The Retreat at Sheppard Pratt Director of Clinical Research Sheppard Pratt Health System Baltimore, MD MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: This study is the largest ever conducted on patients with severe, chronic depression, a group typically ignored by clinical research in psychiatry. We looked at individuals who, on average, had received 8 unsuccessful treatment interventions in the past. These individuals were split into two groups and examined over five years. One group was given proven anti-depressant treatments (medications, psychotherapy, and/or electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)), and one group was given both anti-depressant treatments and VNS Therapy—an implantable, pacemaker-like device that stimulates the vagus nerve, which regulates mood in the brain. • The study found that 67.9% of the VNS therapy group responded to treatment, compared to 40.9% of patients receiving treatment as usual. Importantly, the VNS therapy group reported responses earlier in treatment, and responses were sustained longer than those receiving treatment as usual. • VNS therapy improved treatment effect in individuals whether they had unipolar or bipolar disorder, and whether or not they had responded to ECT in the past. (more…)
Author Interviews, Depression, Mayo Clinic / 15.03.2017

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Hilal Maradit Kremers, M.D. M.Sc.  Associate Professor of Epidemiology Mayo Clinic College of Medicine  MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Depression and mood disorders are common comorbidities in patients undergoing total hip and total knee arthroplasty.  Based on previous research, there is evidence to suggest presence of depression in arthroplasty patients is associated with worse functional and clinical outcomes, such as complications, readmissions and mortality.  Although the mechanisms are poorly understood, it is important to identify strategies to effectively manage perioperative depression in an effort to improve arthroplasty outcomes.  One potential strategy is effective medical treatment of underlying depression which can potentially improve depression symptoms, thereby surgical outcomes. (more…)