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Despite an extensive psychotherapeutic and pharmacological arsenal, many affected individuals continue to suffer while the burden on the health care system increases.
Of the millions affected worldwide, 20% to 40% are resistant to pharmacological antidepressant treatments while another third show poor response.
Causes of autism are murky, varied and complex. But researchers have taken a step forward, identifying hundreds of new genes that may play a role in the development of autism
- a neuro-developmental disorder that affects children’s ability to communicate, learn and socialize.
…according to a study presented at the American Psychiatric Association’s 2016 Annual Meeting.
As of 2011, approximately 11% of US children have been diagnosed with attention-deficit / hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and that number continues to grow.
Additionally, it is estimated that the disorder will persist into adulthood in 50% to 60% of affected individuals.
Whole-body hyperthermia (WBH) may ease depression symptoms for up to 6 weeks, according to a study published in JAMA Psychiatry to coincide with the annual meeting of the Society of Biological Psychiatry, held from May 12 to 14 in Atlanta.
Researchers evaluated 29 patients (18 to 65 years of age) who were deemed medically healthy, met criteria for major depressive disorder, were free of psychotropic medication use, and had a baseline 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score of 16 or greater.
The team conducted a 6-week, randomized, double-blind study at a university-based medical center comparing WBH with a sham treatment.
One week after treatment, the researchers re-evaluated each participant's depression symptoms. Additional evaluations were conducted every 2 weeks for 6 weeks.
The researchers found that 60% of the patients responded to treatment and 40% met the criteria for remission from their depression.
The real hyperthermia therapy improved depression scores a week later by an average of 5.67 points above that produced by the sham treatment. At 6 weeks after treatment, the real treatment had still improved depression scores by 4.83 points.
"We were surprised to see that the effect (of reduced depression symptoms) was still present six weeks after the initial treatment," study author Charles Raison, MD, of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said in a university news release.
Self-reports from the volunteers also showed their syptoms of depression had eased slightly. The participants reported only minor adverse effects from the treatment.
According to a recent study, researchers added that as sleep apnea worsens, the risk of these problems also may increase.
Sleep apnea causes people to experience repetitive pauses in breathing while they sleep. This causes oxygen levels to drop temporarily, according to the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
The number of children under 6 poisoned by nicotine in e-cigarettes rose by nearly 1,500% between 2013 and 2015, and one child died, according to an analysis of calls to the National Poison Data System published in the journal Pediatrics.
Although not specifically stated in the labeling for levothyroxine (L-T4), in clinical practice guidelines, coffee is recognized as a compound that may interact with this synthetic hormone used in the treatment of primary or central hypothyroidism.
A staggering 55 million Americans meet the clinical definition of insomnia, experiencing not only problems getting to sleep but also serious impairment in their daytime activities.