Children and adolescents of depressed parents are four to six times more likely to develop depressive symptoms themselves than children of non-depressed parents. This translates to approximately 61% of children of parents with depression developing a psychiatric disorder during their life. Strikingly, more than one-quarter of children in America will experience at least one episode of depression by the time they reach adulthood. Overall, an estimated 1 in 5 Americans will experience depression sometime in their lives, equating to a large number of children with depressed parents. Many studies have focused on the treatment of depression in both adults and children and adolescents, but few focus on its prevention. A new study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) examines the efficacy of preventive interventions in adolescents with depressed parents. Read more →

Anxiety disorders are among the most common diagnoses in children and adolescents. Anxiety problems that begin in childhood are often quite damaging, leading to low self-esteem, social isolation, inadequate social skills, academic difficulties, and physical manifestations such as headaches and stomachaches. Actual prevalence rates of anxiety disorders reported in the literature vary, but may, in fact, range from approximately 9% to nearly 20% of pediatric patients. Many children with anxiety disorders become adults with anxiety disorders. Read more →

The National Institute of Mental Health recently cited a study published in the December 2008 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. The study was cited as providing evidence that supports the idea that adolescents with major depressive disorder (i.e., depression) are less likely to relapse after treatment if they receive cognitive behavioral therapy in conjunction with psychotropic medication.

I have to admit that this was not entirely shocking news to me, but I was slightly surprised to find the topic highlighted by NIMH as a “Science Update.” Read more →

A few weeks ago, I wrote about irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and the abnormal brain activity seen on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a recent clinical trial. These findings supported the theory that patients with IBS have an altered sensation of abdominal pain and respond more strongly and more emotionally to pain than unaffected patients.

Now, researcher at the the University of Buffalo, State University of New York have shown that the powers of the mind can be harnessed to effectively reduce the symptoms of pain, bloating and altered bowel function. Read more →