Antidepressant Medication Research Paper

Lastly, what effects to antidepressants have on mood, behavior, and suicidal tendencies? In her article, ‘The Hidden Harm of Antidepressants’, Diana Kwon, a science writer with a Master’s degree for McGill University in neuroscience, she reviews several studies about the use of antidepressants, and had found the safety data on some of these drugs have been withheld from the public. She mentions research done in Copenhagen by some researchers at the Nordic Cochrane Center, and how they discovered that “pharmaceutical companies were not presenting the full extent of serious harm in clinical study reports…” (Kwon para 2). These clinical study reports are then used by people at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve or deny new

Cuijpers (2017) identifies that over the last 40 years there have been approximately 500 randomized trials looking at the efficacy of treating depression with psychological methods. The studies chosen provide insight into the lack of efficacy of antidepressant medication therapy, as well as the effectiveness of psychological therapies. The evidence provided in the studies appears to support one another.

In the study patients age 20 to 64 that is diagnosed with depression and on antidepressants was used to observe the possibility of antidepressants causing epilepsy. The data does show some links between antidepressant use and epilepsy, even though it is inconsistent and non-decisive.

The majority of epidemiological studies have not managed to establish a relationship between the use of antidepressants and the risk of breast cancer. However, there is biological evidence available that suggests a connection. Antidepressants have been linked to the promotion of mammary tumour growth and the increase of serum prolactin levels in women. The prevalence of antidepressant use has recently witnessed a rapid rise, making it increasingly important to monitor for their associated long-term effects. This population-based case-control study aims to assess the risk of breast cancer associated with the newer classes of antidepressants and longer-term use. In addition, they aim to distinguish whether the age and BMI of a woman increases

Once a practitioner has a strong understanding about MDD diagnostic criteria, prevalence, etiology, and prognosis, he or she should then strive to understand recommended MDD treatment modalities. The use of antidepressant medication (ADM), has been a highly regarded treatment for depression. In addition, cognitive-based approaches have also seen positive results. Therefore, Hollon et al. (2014) examined the effects of cognitive therapy (CT) combined with ADM, as opposed to ADM alone, on the treatment of individuals with MDD. Hollon et al. (2014) recruited 452 adults with chronic or recurrent MDD for this study. Patients were randomly assigned to the CT and ADM condition or to the ADM only condition (Hollon et al., 2014). Hollon et al. (2014) also stated that treatment lasted as long as 42 months. Hollon et al. (2014) found that CT combined with ADM significantly improved the rate of recovery when compared to the ADM alone, but only if the patients had severe MDD. The effect was not significant for individuals with mild and/or moderate depression. Therefore, Hollon et al. (2014) argued that ADM combined with CT will improve recovery rates for individuals with severe MDD.

In Issue 13 of Taking Sides, the controversial question Have Antidepressant Drugs Proven to be Effective is analyzed. Psychiatrist Peter D. Kramer argues in this issue that antidepressant drugs "can transform depressed patients into happy people with almost no side effects" (p.212). On the contrary, professors of psychology Seymour Fisher and Roger P. Greenburg "claim that the studies that demonstrate the effectiveness of antidepressants are seriously flawed" (p.212). Kramer's agreement with the statement above is due mostly to the testing he did with his patient Tess and antidepressant drugs. However Fisher and Greenberg disagree with the statement mainly because of the bias drug studies that

Research Question: Are antidepressants being over prescribed, if so what other options do doctors have and what should they be considering?

Does cognitive-behavioral therapy work just as well as antidepressants when treating depression? How we perceive our depression is what helps to determine the type of treatment necessary. Antidepressants treat the common symptoms of depression rather than the condition while therapy helps change the thought process so the disease is cured in the end. Many studies are done to provide necessary information to what the answer to this question should be. The following articles provided studies that explained the effects of treatment with medication, with therapy, or a combination of both.

A study was released June 23, 2016, on a new method for detecting anti-depressants in whole blood by Gas Chromatography on a triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). This study was conducted by Liliana Trua, Andre L castro, Sonia Tarelho, Pedro costa, M. GoretiF. Sales, and Helena M. Teixeira. The purpose was to use GC-MS/MS to detect and quantify antidepressants (AD) in whole blood for forensic science purposes. There is a plethora of research on the separation of AD 's from substances such as urine or serum, yet there is little research on the separation of Anti-Depressants 's from whole blood (Truta, Castro and Tarelho). Furthermore, the methods researched were generally carried out using Liquid Chromatography as opposed to Gas chromatography (Truta, Castro and Tarelho). Research has shown that Gas Chromatography produces better resolution and the analysis is faster and is measured in minutes (Cheriyadath). The objective was to determine if Gas Chromatography was truly the better method for separating whole blood from anti-depressants (Truta, Castro and Tarelho).

The cause of Clinical depression has long been a mystery to physicians and researchers. Many different theories have been proposed, but no conclusive evidence has been put forth. However, most of what we know about depression stems from the results of certain drugs which have been successful in treating the clinically depressed. These anti--depressants have led to the assumption that depression is most likely due to a chemical imbalance (of neurotransmitters) which somehow leads to the symptoms of depression. To try and write a paper on all the theories of depression would be endless, as would be a study on all the different types of

Fluoxetine is also known as Prozac, common antidepressant drug (1). It works as selective, competitive reversible antagonist of serotonin receptor that prevent reuptake of serotonin from synapse (2). Due to selectivity, little effect on other neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and noradrenaline. It increase the concentration of serotonin at the synapse and serotonergic neuronal transmission strength, and it triggers negative feedback loop of serotonin, which reduce the conversion of tryptophan to serotonin (3). Fluoxetine does not display species difference, but effect as antidepressant is depend on the dose thought out number of studies. Fluoxetine is administrated as tablets with usual starting dose of fluoxetine is 20mg per day, and it

Benzodiazepines include anticonvulsant drugs (tested in the study) and antidepression and anxiety drugs (medications my patient was on- specifically Xanax)- However to perfectly match the study to the clinical problem, Cerebral Palsy patients taking Xanax could be measured against Cerebral Palsy patient not taking any medication plus a control group of normal individuals.

Common types of medication include POM (prescription only medication) which can be obtained from a pharmacist only if prescribed by a doctor. These could include anti-depressants which are very common. Anti-depressants work by selecting receptors in the brain and controls levels of serotonin. They come under the group 'SSRIS' (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors). Over the counter medicines (OTC) may include things like paracetamol or ibuprofen, which are everyday painkillers. Something like paracetamol inhibits the production of pain and inflammation-causing chemicals called prostaglandins.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) affects approximately 6.7% of adults age 18 and over in the United States (US) in a given year, as well as rates as the leading cause of disability for ages 15-44 (https://adaa.org/about-adaa/press-room/facts-statistics). Despite consistent advances in psychopharmacology, only about 60-70% of patients respond to psychopharmacological treatment. Of those patients who do not respond, 10-30% display treatment-resistant symptoms paired with problems in their social and occupational functioning, in addition to declines in physical health, suicidal thoughts, and an increased use of health-care

The first step to treating many of these new cases of depression is the prescription and use of antidepressant medication, however this has cause a mass flooding of our society with unnecessary prescription drugs. Due to the ease of treatment, primarily with prescription drugs, and the large range of severity in depression is often over diagnosed, adding to the problem.