Objective: A threefold increase in the use of antidepressants has been reported among children (18 years old and younger) between 1987 (0.3%) and 1996 (1.0%). The aim of this study was to determine whether pediatric use of antidepressants continued to rise at a national level during the period 1997-2002. Method: The Medical Expenditure Panel…

Randomization procedures are performed in order to maximize the internal validity of treatment outcome studies. Objections have been made that this practice undermines the external validity of these studies because it ignores patients' treatment preferences, thereby precluding the self-selection of treatment that can occur in the community. This…

Defines childhood depression and symptoms associated with its occurrence. Addresses some questions around the use of antidepressant medication in children, including its safety, how it works, who prescribes it, and whether or not there are alternatives to medicine. Provides ways treatment staff and teachers can take an active role in helping…

Exercise can be as effective as psychotherapy and antidepressant therapy in treating mild-to-moderate depression, and even more effective when used in conjunction with them. Exercise can also be preventive therapy for those not clinically depressed. The paper explains how best to work exercise into a depressed patient's therapy. (Author/SM)

Background: Depressed adults may show impairment in switching attention from one task to another. Rumination on negative thoughts is associated with the onset and persistence of depressive episodes. It is unclear if such mood-related ruminations are specifically associated with slowed ability in switching attention from one task to another.…

This paper reviews the literature on the physiological causes of bulimia and investigates the rationale behind the usage of antidepressant medication in the treatment of bulimia nervosa. No definite conclusions can be stated regarding the physiology of bulimia, but a number of hypotheses are suggested. It appears that the hypothalamus is involved…

Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) was developed specifically for the chronically depressed patient. CBASP has been shown to be as efficacious as medication singly, and in combination with antidepressant medication is associated with notably high response rates in chronic depression. CBASP's core procedure, "situational…

Background: Both the professional and the general media have recently published concerns about an "epidemic" of child and adolescent depression. Reasons for this concern include (1) increases in antidepressant prescriptions, (2) retrospective recall by successive birth cohorts of adults, (3) rising adolescent suicide rates until 1990,…

Depression doubles the likelihood of comorbid depression, which presents as major depression in 11% and subsyndromal depression in 31% of patients with the medical illness. The course of depression is chronic, and afflicted patients suffer an average of one episode annually. Depression has unique importance in diabetes because of its association…

Background: The clinical profile of depressive disorder in children and young people in Child Adolescent and Family Services (CAFS), Northampton was studied. Methods: Twenty-five patients who had attended the CAFS over a period of 2 years were analysed retrospectively. Results: The age range of subjects was 8 to 19 years. Majority of patients were…

Effects of Behavioral Activation Treatment (BAT) on pain anxiety, depression, and pain interference on a 43-year-old female with an 11-year history of chronic fibromyalgia pain are described. Analgesic, anxyiolytic, and antidepressant medications were stabilized prior to participation. Dependent measures were the Behavioral Relaxation Scale, a…

Objective: To test a collaborative-care, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) program adjunctive to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) treatment in HMO pediatric primary care. Method: A randomized effectiveness trial comparing a treatment-as-usual (TAU) control condition consisting primarily of SSRI medication delivered outside the…

This article for teachers provides basic information on psychiatric disorders and treatments. It covers oppositional defiant and conduct disorders, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, depression or other mood disorders, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders, and autistic spectrum disorders. Insets provide additional…

Objective: Escitalopram is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressant indicated for use in adults. This trial examined the efficacy and safety of escitalopram in pediatric depression. Method: Patients (6-17 years old) with major depressive disorder were randomized to receive 8 weeks of double-blind flexibly dosed treatment with…

This booklet is concerned with the area of clinical depression. Questions about clinical depression are briefly answered in an overview section and are examined in greater detail in the five chapters that follow. In chapter 1, depression is defined and various types of depression are identified. The origins of depression are explored in the second…