An antidepressant is a psychiatric medication or other substance (nutrient or herb) used for alleviating depression or dysthymia ('milder' depression). Drug groups known as MAOIs, tricyclics and SSRIs are particularly associated with the term. These medications are now amongst the drugs most commonly prescribed by psychiatrists and general practitioners, and their effectiveness and adverse effects are the subject of many studies and competing claims. Nutrients for which there are claims of antidepressant activity include phenylalanine, tyrosine, tryptophan, 5-Hydroxytryptophan, and choline. Most antidepressants have a delayed onset of action and are usually taken over the course of weeks, months or years. They are generally considered distinct from stimulants, and drugs used for an immediate euphoric effect only are not generally considered antidepressants. Despite the name, antidepressants are often used in the treatment of other conditions, including anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, eating disorders and chronic pain. Some have also become known as lifestyle drugs or "mood brighteners". Other medications not known as antidepressants, including antipsychotics in low doses[1] and benzodiazepines,[2] are also widely used to manage depression. The term antidepressant is sometimes applied to any therapy (e.g. psychotherapy, electro-convulsive therapy, acupuncture) or process (e.g. sleep disruption, increased light levels, … Continue reading →

More than $2,000 was raised to help local charities for children living with autism at a grassroots event praised by area politicians on Sunday. The $2,500 raised by the Trees for Children event will be split evenly between Friends for Autism and A Dog for Drew. The second-annual event, held at Maplehurst Manor in Maitland on Sunday afternoon, attracted a number of local politicians who spoke about the importance of raising awareness of autism. You always have to look at the world through the eyes of a child, and that includes an autistic child, said Liberal senator Jim Munson, who represents Ottawa-Rideau Canal. Lisa MacLeod, a leadership candidate for the provincial Progressive Conservative Party, also delivered remarks at the event. She spoke about the need to bring awareness to autism, which she called an important public policy issue. These are real struggles with real families and we need to lend our support, she said. Families affected by autism also spoke. An Etobicoke mother, Dee Gordon, will be walking from her Greater Toronto Area home to Ottawa in the new year to raise awareness and funds for autism. Gordons 12-year-old son, Jacob, suffers from autism and she mentioned the troubles she … Continue reading →

The Jefferson County Jail (Jesse Paul, The Denver Post) Kenneth McGill's face was drooping, his voice slurred and one side of his body numb in 2012 when he told a nurse at the Jefferson County Jail that he was having a stroke. A U.S. District Court jury awarded McGill $11 million on Monday after finding that Correctional Healthcare Companies, and the nurse they employed at the jail, were deliberately indifferent to his medical needs. Twenty-four hours passed before he received treatment. The Jefferson County commission and Sheriff Ted Mink were also named in the 42-page lawsuit. McGill, 46, still walks with a limp as a result of his stroke on Sept. 17, 2012. "I was scared to death that I was going to die," McGill said Tuesday in a phone interview. "I was actively having a stroke in front of nursing staff and they were telling me that I was wrong. It was pretty disheartening." McGill, who was being held on a DUI charge, was working in the jail kitchen when a headache struck and he began to feel dizzy. A nurse told McGill he was probably dehydrated and told him to drink water. Later, as he tried to go … Continue reading →

MITTEILUNG UEBERMITTELT VON BUSINESS WIRE. FUER DEN INHALT IST ALLEIN DAS BERICHTENDE UNTERNEHMEN VERANTWORTLICH. INGELHEIM, Germany --(BUSINESS WIRE)-- 08.04.2014 -- For media outside of the U.S., the UK & Canada only Boehringer Ingelheim today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Pradaxa (dabigatran etexilate) for the treatment of DVT and PE in patients who have been treated with a parenteral (injectable) anticoagulant for five to 10 days, and to reduce the risk of recurrent DVT and PE in patients who have been previously treated. Venous thromboembolism is the third most common cardiovascular disease after myocardial infarction and stroke. About one-third of patients with a DVT or PE will suffer a recurrence within 10 years, said Samuel Z. Goldhaber, M.D., Director of Brigham and Womens Hospitals Thrombosis Research Group and Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School. Dabigatran has an established efficacy and safety profile for stroke risk reduction in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation.This new FDA approval expands dabigatrans indications to include treatment and the reduction of the risk of recurrence of DVT and PE. The FDA approval is based on results from four robust phase III clinical trials involving almost 10,000 patients that demonstrated the efficacy … Continue reading →