Heterogeneity of Elderly Depression: Increased Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease and A? Protein Metabolism.

Heterogeneity of elderly depression: Increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease and A? protein metabolism.

Filed under: Depression Treatment

Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2012 Dec 28;
Namekawa Y, Baba H, Maeshima H, Nakano Y, Satomura E, Takebayashi N, Nomoto H, Suzuki T, Arai H

Epidemiological studies have proposed that depression may increase the risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), even in patients with early-onset depression. Although metabolism of amyloid ? protein (A?) in elderly depression received attention in terms of their correlation, there is a serious heterogeneity in elderly depression in terms of age at onset of depression. Moreover, it is unknown whether early-onset major depressive disorder (MDD) has a long-term effect on the involvement of A? metabolism and later development of AD. Thus, we evaluated serum A?40 and A?42 levels, the A?40/A?42 ratio in 89 elderly (?60 years of age) inpatients with MDD and 81 age-matched healthy controls, and compared them among patients with early-onset (<60 years) and late-onset (?60 years) MDD and controls. The results showed that the serum A?40/A?42 ratio was significantly higher in patients with both early- and late-onset MDD than in controls (early-onset, p=0.010; late-onset, p=0.043), and it is of great interest that the serum A?40/A?42 ratio was negatively correlated with the age at MDD onset (R=-0.201, p=0.032). These results suggest that an earlier onset of MDD may have a more serious abnormality in A? metabolism, possibly explaining a biological mechanism underlying the link between depression and AD. HubMed – depression

A pilot randomized controlled trial with paroxetine for subthreshold PTSD in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom era veterans.

Filed under: Depression Treatment

Psychiatry Res. 2012 Dec 28;
Naylor JC, Dolber TR, Strauss JL, Kilts JD, Strauman TJ, Bradford DW, Szabo ST, Youssef NA, Connor KM, Davidson JR, Marx CE

Subthreshold posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with increased risk for suicidality, depression, and functional impairment. We thus conducted a small (N=12) pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) with paroxetine for subthreshold PTSD in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) era veterans. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) scores improved by 30.4% in the paroxetine group. Paroxetine may have promise for subthreshold PTSD.
HubMed – depression

Depression and suicide ideation in late adolescence and early adulthood are an outcome of child hunger.

Filed under: Depression Treatment

J Affect Disord. 2012 Dec 28;
McIntyre L, Williams JV, Lavorato DH, Patten S

BACKGROUND: Child hunger represents an adverse experience that could contribute to mental health problems in later life. The objectives of this study were to: (1) examine the long-term effects of the reported experience of child hunger on late adolescence and young adult mental health outcomes; and (2) model the independent contribution of the child hunger experience to these long-term mental health outcomes in consideration of other experiences of child disadvantage. METHODS: Using logistic regression, we analyzed data from the Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth covering 1994 through 2008/2009, with data on hunger and other exposures drawn from NLSCY Cycle 1 (1994) through Cycle 7 (2006/2007) and mental health data drawn from Cycle 8 (2008/2009). Our main mental health outcome was a composite measure of depression and suicidal ideation. RESULTS: The prevalence of child hunger was 5.7% (95% CI 5.0-6.4). Child hunger was a robust predictor of depression and suicidal ideation [crude OR=2.9 (95% CI 1.4-5.8)] even after adjustment for potential confounding variables, OR=2.3 (95% CI 1.2-4.3). LIMITATIONS: A single question was used to assess child hunger, which itself is a rare extreme manifestation of food insecurity; thus, the spectrum of child food insecurity was not examined, and the rarity of hunger constrained statistical power. CONCLUSIONS: Child hunger appears to be a modifiable risk factor for depression and related suicide ideation in late adolescence and early adulthood, therefore prevention through the detection of such children and remedy of their circumstances may be an avenue to improve adult mental health.
HubMed – depression

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