October 26th, 2011 by PeterWehrwein in Research
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Remember when the best-selling book Listening to Prozac came out almost 20 years ago?
Now Americans aren’t just reading about Prozac. They are taking it and other antidepressants (Celexa, Effexor, Paxil, Zoloft, to name just a few) in astounding numbers.
According to a report released yesterday by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), the rate of antidepressant use in this country among teens and adults (people ages 12 and older) increased by almost 400% between 1988–1994 and 2005–2008.
The federal government’s health statisticians figure that Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Harvard Health Blog*
September 25th, 2011 by RyanDuBosar in Research
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More than two in five patients hesitate to discuss depression in the primary care setting, leading researchers to offer practical tips on how to encourage people to broach the subject.
The big reasons for not talking to doctors included fears about patient confidentiality and fear of losing emotional control in front of the doctor, among those with a history of depression. Among those with no prior history, a fear of antidepressants/psychiatry and the perception that primary care isn’t the right setting are two big reasons.
To learn why patients choose not to talk about their depression, researchers Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*
September 15th, 2011 by Dinah Miller, M.D. in Opinion
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Please see my post on Clinical Psychiatry News and yesterday’s post What’s in a Note? along with the reader comments.
One reader asked why it’s weird to want to see your shrink’s notes and why shrinks refuse to show them on the grounds that they may distress the patients. Another reader asked why doctors write “patient denies” as though they don’t believe the patient. These are both great questions worthy of their own post.
Why don’t psychiatrists like to show patients their notes? Are they really going to “harm” the patient? There are a few reasons why a psychiatrist may not want to show a patient her notes. Here is my list of thoughts as bullet points. Please feel free to add to it. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Shrink Rap*
September 8th, 2011 by RyanDuBosar in Research
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Most patients with major depression require a second medication. A psychiatrist suggests that exercise could fulfill that need, too.
Because most patients with major depression don’t fully respond to just one drug, it’s common to try a second drug or cognitive behavioral therapy. But the rate of non-response in this group is prompting researchers to look for an intervention that most patients could do and that would add to current therapies.
Moderate and intense levels of daily exercise can work as well as administering a second antidepressant drug, as long as Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*
August 22nd, 2011 by Glenn Laffel, M.D., Ph.D. in Opinion, Research
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Way back in 1946, the chartering documents for a new agency of the UN—the World Health Organization—defined health as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”
We have made astounding progress in medicine and public health since the WHO charter was crafted, yet we have actualized only part of its comprehensive vision for health. What we call health care today is really just illness care. Even our disease prevention and health promotion programs focus on reducing risk factors for disease. It is the rare initiative indeed that encourages good health for its own sake. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Pizaazz*
