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Intervention Helps Depressed Elderly
By
Shanida Smith
May 26, 2003 NEW YORK - Researchers at Weill
Medical College of Cornell University in New York are beginning to analyze
data from a study that may help prevent suicide in the elderly. Early
indications show older adults who have major depression benefit more from
a change in care delivery than medications. Investigators gathered data
from 1,200 participants, ages 60 and older, with depressive symptoms and
signs. Primary physicians for the control group were advised to treat
depression in their patients however they wanted. Participants in the
intervention group received a one-time, targeted intervention from
depression specialists; nurses, psychologists or social workers specially
trained to treat depressive patients. Lead researcher George
Alexopoulous, M.D., told Ivanhoe, "What we have seen is that, in
those patients who had major depression, they were most likely to benefit
from intervention." Depression, suicidal thoughts and hopelessness
were reduced in the intervention group prominently after four months. In
addition, the study shows primary physicians may not be equipped to handle
major depression. Dr. Alexopoulous says the
assumption in the medical field is if anti-depressants work for some, they
would be able to treat everyone. However, he says, "What we're
finding is that that might be true for mild depression, but not severe
cases of depression." Early indications also show older adults are not inclined to see themselves as depressed or to accept the diagnosis. Dr. Alexopoulous says, "Two-thirds of the depressed elderly never see a mental health specialist." He adds patients in the intervention group accepted the depression specialists because they were directly working in the primary physician's office. As a result, the participants did not feel stigmatized. Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging
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