St. Jude Medical will begin enrollment in a controlled, multi-site, blinded, clinical study of deep brain stimulation for major depressive disorder, a severe form of depression.
In the U.S., more than 21 million adults suffer from some kind of depressive disorder, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Of these, only about 80 percent can be effectively treated with currently available therapies, according to the National Advisory Mental Health Council. Unfortunately, that means approximately 4 million adult Americans live with depression that does not respond to medications, psychotherapy and, in certain cases, electroconvulsive therapy.
The BROADEN (BROdmann Area 25 DEep brain Neuromodulation) study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of deep brain stimulation in patients with depression for whom currently-available treatments are not effective.
The Libra Deep Brain Stimulation System, which is being evaluated in this study, is designed to deliver mild electrical pulses from a device implanted near the collarbone and connected to small electrical leads placed at specific targets in the brain.
“Major depressive disorder is severely disabling,” said Dr. Lozano. “Currently, there are no widely-accepted treatment options for patients with this condition once multiple medications, psychotherapy and electroconvulsive therapy have failed.”
1 Comment Received
Many well-known therapists believe that ;biological and psychological
factors both play a large and affective Role .
Here – In this comment – I will try to Deal with the biological one ..
Feelings of depression are caused by a chemical change that affects
how the brain functions.
A normally functioning brain is a giant messaging system that controls
everything from your heartbeat, to walking, to your emotions. The
brain is made up of billions of components with called “nerve cells”
or “neurons” . These nerve cells send and receive messages from the
rest of all your body, using brain chemicals “neurotransmitters” .
These chemicals in the human brain are responsible for our emotional
state. Depression happens when these chemical messages are not
correctly send or received between brain cells, which affect the
communication.
(i. e., A telephone): If your telephone has a weak signal, you can’t
hear the person on the other end. so it is disabled or unclear
It has been proposed that even the people who already suffering
depression, have a way to treat it passed on the biological side, This
way is the “Medications” .
The main role of the “Medications” Is to fortify weak signals by
raising the levels of certain neurotransmitters . which guarantee that
the brain’s messages are submitted loud and clear.
…More information and Related Topics at My Blog!
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