OBJECTIVE This study investigated the association between plasma galanin level and depression severity. METHODS The severity of depression symptoms of 79 patients with major depressive disorder (MDD; 52 women and 27 men, 71 patients in onset, 8 in remission) was assessed using the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Venous fasting blood samples (5 mL) were taken from the 79 MDD patients...

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of psychological intervention on the life quality of patients with laryngeal cancer. METHODS Two hundred and ten patients with laryngeal cancer were randomly assigned to the study group receiving psychological intervention and control group receiving routine nursing care. The Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD), Hamilton Anxiety Scale...

INTRODUCTION Misinterpretation of intrusive thoughts because of obsessive beliefs has been thought to be important in the development of obsessive compulsive symptoms. In current study, (I) the difference between OCD patients and healthy controls in regard of obsessive beliefs and (II) the relation of obsesive beliefs with the prevelance and severity of obsessive compulsive symptoms was investi...

BACKGROUND Depression is one of the most common mental health disorders. Acupuncture is a popular complementary and alternative medicine intervention suggested in the treatment of depression, but its effectiveness is uncertain. This updated meta-analysis was conducted to more precisely assess the beneficial effect of acupuncture in depression therapy. METHODS The following databases were sear...

Meta-analyses indicate that antidepressants are superior to placebos in statistical terms, but the clinical relevance of the differences has not been established. Previous suggestions of clinically relevant effect sizes have not been supported by empirical evidence. In the current paper we apply an empirical method that consists of comparing scores obtained on the Hamilton rating scale for depr...

BACKGROUND No study has investigated the impact of the duration of untreated depression (DUD) on the severity of depression at the two-year follow-up point in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who discontinued pharmacotherapy. This study aimed to investigate this issue. METHODS This study enrolled 155 subjects with MDD at baseline, and 101 subjects who had discontinued pharmacothe...

BACKGROUND Behavioural activation might be a viable alternative to antidepressant medication for major depressive disorder. AIMS To compare the effectiveness of behavioural activation and treatment as usual (TAU, antidepressant medication) for major depressive disorder in routine clinical practice in Iran. METHOD Patients with major depressive disorder (n = 100) were randomised to 16 sessio...

OBJECTIVE To determine whether social functional recovery precedes, runs in parallel with, or lags behind symptomatic recovery from major depressive episodes. METHOD Psychiatric out-patients or in-patients aged 18 years or over, diagnosed with unipolar major depressive disorder according to DSM-IV, and who had received no antidepressant medication in the preceding 3 months were identified at ...