Posted by MERM on 1/26/2009, 10:00 am
Brain Scans Show Antidepressants At Work
Today's antidepressants have pulled millions of people from the depths of depression. But now researchers have a better understanding why they work.
For the first time, scientists have used sophisticated imaging technology --called functional magnetic resonance technology (fMRI) -- to view the brain as it is working, and in effect watch changes caused by antidepressants.
Their report appears in the January issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.
Researchers studied a small group of people diagnosed with severe depression before and after treatment, and compared their brain reactions with those of people without any mood disorder, and who didn't take antidepressants.
They found that the drug caused significant changes in a section of the brain that governs focused attention and is used when people face conflict. They also found that the depressed patients had lower overall brain activity in this region than did the untreated group.
In fact, these brain changes were observed just two weeks after they started the medication, writes researcher Richard J. Davidson, PhD, a psychologist with the University of Wisconsin-Madison.wellnesstrainresearchteam@M@
Message Thread:
« Back to thread