Depression is a neurological disorder that affects people’s mood, behavior, and physical health. The disorder’s diagnosis and treatment are focused on evaluating patients’ characteristics and managing symptoms to support daily living. The causes of depressive disorders are complex – they include a variety of environmental, social, biochemical, and genetic factors (Arcangelo, Peterson, Wilbur, & Reinhold, 2017). Therefore, therapy plans also differ from one patient to another and are assessed based on their ability to stabilize patients’ moods and behavioral patterns. According to statistics, depression is prevalent in women, and it increases with age (Arcangelo et al., 2017). However, since this type of disorder is largely underdiagnosed, the true rates remain unclear. For example, children and adolescents have many cases of depression (Mojtabai, Olfson, & Han, 2016). Treatment of depressive disorders is centered on managing symptoms, using medications for mood stabilization and neurotransmitters’ activation.
Neurological Disorder and Treatment
The primary purpose of drug therapy for depression is to help the patient gain an acceptable level of functioning while minimizing possible side effects (Arcangelo et al., 2017). The symptoms of depressive disorders include depressed moods (melancholic, irritated, sad, hopeless, or self-deprecating), low motivation, diminished interest, significant weight fluctuation (gain or loss), fatigue, insomnia or hypersomnia, and suicidal ideations (Arcangelo et al., 2017). However, some specific types of depressive disorders such as postpartum depression and seasonal affective disorder have their unique aspects. Moreover, depressive disorders may have varying levels of severity and consistency. Treatment should depend on the presence of symptoms and the patient’s characteristics.
The hypotheses of depression consider the deficiency of serotonin and other neurotransmitters to be the leading cause of symptoms’ occurrence. Such drugs as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSSRIs) impact the levels of serotonin in the brain by blocking its reuptake (Bauer et al., 2015). SSSRIs are the first-line treatment option that one can use to treat depression. Other medications include tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs), and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) (Bauer et al., 2015). It should be noted that these drugs can cause side effects that worsen patients’ mental state by enhancing depressive moods. Thus, all medications should be taken by patients whose symptoms are persistent to avoid unnecessary prescriptions.
Patient Factor
Age is a factor that may affect the way drug therapy works on patients with depression. Avenevoli, Swendsen, He, Burstein, and Merikangas (2015) note that depression among adolescents in the US is rising, while the diagnosis and treatment options remain unchanged. Therefore, younger people take the same drugs as adults, thus being exposed to similar side effects. According to Mojtabai et al. (2016), it remains unclear whether prescription medications are helpful for adolescents because the results are mostly based on self-evaluation. However, it is known that children and young adults may experience such side effects as suicidal ideations and unstable moods more often than adults (Mojtabai et al., 2016). Thus, a medical professional must ensure that a young person takes the most suitable medication. Moreover, it is advised to ask people who are close to the patient with depression to pay significant attention to any mood changes, especially if the person starts a new type of drug or changes dosage.
Conclusion
Depression is a disorder that still poses many questions to researchers. The treatment of this condition is focused on symptom management that helps people to enjoy everyday activities and have stable moods. Medical professionals can prescribe drugs that increase serotonin levels in the brain, including SSSRIs, TCAs, SNRIs, and MAOIs. Children and adolescents have an increased rate of depression cases, and their drug therapy may be followed by severe side effects. Healthcare specialists should ensure that young people are taking the right dose of medication and their loved ones are paying attention to the young person’s mood or behavior changes.
References
Arcangelo, V. P., Peterson, A. M., Wilbur, V., & Reinhold, J. A. (Eds.). (2017). Pharmacotherapeutics for advanced practice: A practical approach (4th ed.). Ambler, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Avenevoli, S., Swendsen, J., He, J. P., Burstein, M., & Merikangas, K. R. (2015). Major depression in the National Comorbidity Survey–Adolescent Supplement: Prevalence, correlates, and treatment. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 54(1), 37-44.
Bauer, M., Severus, E., Köhler, S., Whybrow, P. C., Angst, J., & Möller, H. J. (2015). World Federation of Societies of Biological Psychiatry (WFSBP) guidelines for biological treatment of unipolar depressive disorders. Part 2: Maintenance treatment of major depressive disorder – Update 2015. The World Journal of Biological Psychiatry, 16(2), 76-95.
Mojtabai, R., Olfson, M., & Han, B. (2016). National trends in the prevalence and treatment of depression in adolescents and young adults. Pediatrics, 138(6), e20161878.