Severe depression linked to dementia in seniors

Major and worsening depression may significantly increase seniors' risk of dementia, a new study suggests.
The research included close to 2,500 people in their 70s who did not have any signs of dementia at the start of the study. The participants were monitored for five years for symptoms of depression, and then for six years for signs of dementia.
Dementia developed in just over 21 percent of participants with serious and escalating symptoms of depression, compared to about 12 percent of those with consistently minimal symptoms of depression, the findings showed.
"Our results raise the possibility that older adults' cognitive [mental] health could be improved with interventions to reduce depressive symptoms, such as psychotherapy or other behavioral interventions, or medications," said study author Allison Kaup. She is an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco.
"This is an important topic for future treatment studies to investigate," she said in a university news release. This study of 7,550 people found that effective treatment for depression could lower a patient's heart risks to the same level as those who never had depression, reducing their chances of stroke, heart attack, heart failure and death.
The risk of major heart problems was: 4.6 percent among those successfully treated for depression: 4.8 percent among those without depression; 6 percent among those with depression who did not respond to treatment; and 6.4 percent among those who developed depression during the study.
The findings from the researchers at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Salt Lake City were to be presented Saturday at an American College of Cardiology meeting in Chicago. Studies presented at meetings are usually considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.
Kaup said researchers can't rule out the possibility that depression might be an early signal of dementia or an emotional response to a decline in thinking and memory skills. And the association seen in the study does not prove cause-and-effect.
    HealthDay

Severe depression linked to dementia in seniors

Major and worsening depression may significantly increase seniors risk of dementia, a new study suggests. The research included close to 2,500 people in their 70s who did not have any signs of dementia at the start of the study. The participants were monitored for five years for symptoms of depression, and then for six years for signs of dementia. Dementia developed in just over 21 percent of participants with serious and escalating symptoms of depression, compared to about 12 percent of those with consistently minimal symptoms of depression, the findings showed. Our results raise the possibility that older adults cognitive [mental] health could be improved with interventions to reduce depressive symptoms, such as psychotherapy or other behavioral interventions, or medications, said study author Allison Kaup. She is an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. This is an important topic for future treatment studies to investigate, she said in a university news release. This study of 7,550 people found that effective treatment for depression could lower a patients heart risks to the same level as those who never had depression, reducing their chances of stroke, heart attack, heart failure and death. The risk of major heart problems was: 4.6 percent among those successfully treated for depression: 4.8 percent among those without depression; 6 percent among those with depression who did not respond to treatment; and 6.4 percent among those who developed depression during the study. The findings from the researchers at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Salt Lake City were to be presented Saturday at an American College of Cardiology meeting in Chicago. Studies presented at meetings are usually considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed medical journal. Kaup said researchers cant rule out the possibility that depression might be an early signal of dementia or an emotional response to a decline in thinking and memory skills. And the association seen in the study does not prove cause-and-effect. HealthDay