depression
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Tag archives for depression
Refining Depression’s Wiring Diagram
Posted by David Dobbs on April 7, 2009 I’ve got a story about Helen Mayberg’s work on depression circuits in the new Scientific American Mind. I first wrote about Mayberg in the Times Magazine three years ago, in an article about her experimental use of deep brain stimulation to treat depression, and I later profiled her for SciAm Mind. This new article looks…
Questioning Prozac: The neurogenesis hypothesis takes another hit
Posted by David Dobbs on January 20, 2009 One theory about antidepressants is that they relieve depression by encouraging neurogenesis — the creation of new neurons. Neuroskeptic reviews a study that argues against this idea. the neurogenesis hypothesis has problems of its own. A new paper claims to add to what seems like a growing list of counter-examples: Ageing abolishes the effects of…
Did Antidepressants Depress Japan?
Posted by David Dobbs on March 12, 2008 The Kirsch study published a few weeks ago has stirred much discussion of the placebo power of antidepressants (or is it the antidepressant power of placebos?); it’s clear that the act of taking a pill that you expect to help you often does help you. But can the availability of a pill meant for depression…
What’s Under the Rock: Full Data Shows SSRIs Barely Best Placebo
Posted by David Dobbs on January 17, 2008 I’ve written before, both here and in print, about how FDA policy and drug company practices have allowed drug makers to publish (and the FDA to base approval on) only the most flattering drug-trial results while keeping less-flattering studies in the drawer. Today a New England Journal of Medicine report shows how things change when…