Science News about Medications

New Strategies Help Depressed Patients Become Symptom-Free

Press Release • March 23, 2006

Results of the nation’s largest depression study show that one in three depressed patients who previously did not achieve remission using an antidepressant became symptom-free with the help of an additional medication and one in four achieved remission after switching to a different antidepressant.

Maintenance Treatment Prevents Recurrence in Older Adults with Single-Episode Depression

Press Release • March 16, 2006

People age 70 and older who continued taking the antidepressant that helped them to initially recover from their first episode of depression were 60 percent less likely to experience a new episode of depression over a two-year study period than those who stopped taking the medication, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Gene Influences Antidepressant Response

Press Release • March 15, 2006

Whether depressed patients will respond to an antidepressant depends, in part, on which version of a gene they inherit, a study led by scientists at NIH has discovered. Having two copies of one version of a gene that codes for a component of the brain’s mood―regulating system increased the odds of a favorable response to an antidepressant by up to 18 percent, compared to having two copies of the other, more common version.

Lithium Blocks Enzyme To Help Cells’ Clocks Keep On Tickin’

Science Update • February 17, 2006

NIMH-funded researchers have discovered how lithium likely fixes body clocks gone awry, stabilizing sleep-wake cycles and other daily rhythms disturbed along with mood in bipolar disorder.

Mice Lacking Social Memory Molecule Take Bullying in Stride

Press Release • February 09, 2006

The social avoidance that normally develops when a mouse repeatedly experiences defeat by a dominant animal disappears when it lacks a gene for a memory molecule in a brain circuit for social learning, scientists funded by the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) have discovered.

Stopping Antidepressant Use While Pregnant May Pose Risks

Science Update • February 01, 2006

Pregnant women who discontinue antidepressant medications may significantly increase their risk of relapse during pregnancy, a new NIMH-funded study has found.

Initial Results Help Clinicians Identify Patients with Treatment-Resistant Depression

Press Release • January 06, 2006

Initial results of the nation’s largest clinical trial for depression have helped clinicians to track “real world” patients who became symptom-free and to identify those who were resistant to the initial treatment.

Nobelist Discovers Antidepressant Protein in Mouse Brain

Press Release • January 06, 2006

A protein that seems to be pivotal in lifting depression has been discovered by a Nobel Laureate researcher funded by NIMH.

NIMH Study To Guide Treatment Choices for Schizophrenia (Phase 1 Results)

Press Release • September 19, 2005

A large study funded by NIH's National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) provides, for the first time, detailed information comparing the effectiveness and side effects of five medications — both new and older medications — that are currently used to treat people with schizophrenia.

Actor-Patients´ Requests for Medications Boost Prescribing for Depression

Press Release • April 27, 2005

Researchers funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health, have found that requests from patients for medications have a "profound effect" on physicians prescribing for major depression and adjustment disorder.

New Neurons Born in Adult Rat Cortex

Press Release • February 02, 2005

Recent evidence suggesting that antidepressants may act by triggering the birth of new neurons in the adult hippocampus,* the brain's memory hub, has heightened interest in such adult neurogenesis and raised the question: Could new neurons also be sprouting up in the parts of the adult brain involved in the thinking and mood disturbances of depression and anxiety?

Mutant Gene Linked to Treatment-Resistant Depression

Science Update • December 13, 2004

A mutant gene that starves the brain of serotonin, a mood-regulating chemical messenger, has been discovered and found to be 10 times more prevalent in depressed patients than in control subjects, report researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).

Psychotherapy, Medications Best for Youth With Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Press Release • October 28, 2004

Children and adolescents with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) respond best to a combination of both psychotherapy and an antidepressant, a major clinical trial has found.

Combination Treatment Most Effective in Adolescents with Depression

Press Release • August 17, 2004

A clinical trial of 439 adolescents with major depression has found a combination of medication and psychotherapy to be the most effective treatment.

Research to Test Treatment of Cognitive Dysfunction in Schizophrenia

Press Release • May 06, 2004

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded a four-year, $9 million contract to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and five other academic medical centers to create a network of Treatment Units for Research on Neurocognition and Schizophrenia (TURNS).

“Care Managers” Help Depressed Elderly Reduce Suicidal Thoughts

Press Release • March 02, 2004

An intervention that includes staffing doctors’ offices with depression care managers helps depressed elderly patients reduce suicidal thoughts, a study funded by NIH’s National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has found.

Creation of New Neurons Critical to Antidepressant Action in Mice

Press Release • August 07, 2003

Blocking the formation of neurons in the hippocampus blocks the behavioral effects of antidepressants in mice, say researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Medication and Psychotherapy Treat Depression in Low-Income Minority Women

Press Release • July 01, 2003

Treatment with medication or psychotherapy reduced depressive symptoms in women from minority populations, according to research funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

Lithium Shows Promise Against Alzheimer’s in Mouse Model

Press Release • May 21, 2003

An enzyme crucial to formation of Alzheimer’s plaques and tangles may hold promise as a target for future medications, suggest studies in mice and cells.

Brain Shrinkage in ADHD Not Caused by Medications

Press Release • October 08, 2002

A 10-year study by National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) scientists has found that brains of children and adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are 3-4 percent smaller than those of children who don't have the disorder—and that medication treatment is not the cause.

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders: Are Children Being Overmedicated?

Press Release • September 26, 2002

NOTE TO WRITERS AND EDITORS: Dr. Richard Nakamura, Acting Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, testified this morning before the Committee on Government Reform, United States House of Representatives.

NIMH Study Finds Anti-Psychotic Medication Useful in Treating Serious Behavioral Problems among Children with Autism

Press Release • July 31, 2002

One of a newer class of anti-psychotic medications was successful and well tolerated for the treatment of serious behavioral disturbances associated with autistic disorder in children ages 5 to 17.

Drug Targets Brain Circuits that Drive Appetite and Body Weight

Press Release • July 25, 2002

Research conducted in animals has revealed that an appetite suppressant drug, D-fenfluramine (D-FEN), activates brain pathways that regulate food intake and body weight.

Placebo, Antidepressant May Lift Depression Via Common Mechanism

Press Release • May 01, 2002

Whether it's a widely prescribed medication or a placebo, a successful treatment for depression must trigger a common pattern of brain activity changes, suggests a team of researchers funded by the National Institute of Mental Health.