Replication of Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) Loci for Sleep in the British G1219 Cohort.

Replication of Genome-Wide association studies (GWAS) loci for sleep in the British G1219 cohort.

Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2013 Jul; 162(5): 431-8
Parsons MJ, Lester KJ, Barclay NL, Nolan PM, Eley TC, Gregory AM

Sleep is a critical behavior shared by most higher animals. Sleep disturbances are comorbid with numerous psychiatric disorders, most notably symptoms of depression. Twin studies have suggested that genetic influences partially underlie the variation seen for numerous sleep-related traits across individuals. Recently, two Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) conducted for sleep traits have revealed new candidate genes for sleep-related measures. We attempted to replicate the two most significant associations from these two studies, CACNA1C (a l-type calcium channel) with sleep latency and quality and ABCC9 (an ATP-sensitive potassium channel) with sleep duration, using the G1219 British population sample. We genotyped single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for each of the two different sleep GWAS loci. Linear regression analyses were conducted to assess main effects of these SNPs on their corresponding sleep measures, as well as for depressive symptoms. We successfully replicated an association of a genetic variant in the CACNA1C gene (rs16929277) with sleep quality using an additive model of inheritance. A significant association of the ABCC9 gene (rs11046209) with sleep duration was seen only in a recessive models based upon a rare homozygous genotype (n?=?2). There was also a significant association between a different ABCC9 gene variant (rs11046205) and depressive symptoms. These findings add further support for the involvement of calcium channels in the mechanisms regulating sleep function and suggest a possible role of the ABCC9 gene in depression. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. HubMed – depression

Depressive Symptoms are Associated with Lower Bone Mineral Density in Young Adults with High Job Strain. The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study.

Int J Behav Med. 2013 Jun 19;
Oikonen M, Hintsanen M, Laaksonen M, Mikkilä V, Kähönen M, Lehtimäki T, Pulkki-Råback L, Viikari JS, Keltikangas-Järvinen L, Raitakari OT

BACKGROUND: Job strain has been associated with depressive symptoms, and depression has been associated with low bone mineral density (BMD). PURPOSE: The associations between BMD and job strain have not been studied. We examined the relations between BMD, job strain, and depressive symptoms in a population-based group of young adults in Finland. METHOD: Ultrasonic measurement of BMD at the calcaneus was performed on 777 participants (men 45 %, aged 30-45) drawn from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. Job strain was assessed by self-administered questionnaires by the combination of job demands and job control. Depressive symptoms were assessed with a modified Beck Depression Inventory. The effects of job strain on BMD were studied with multivariable analyses with age, sex, BMI, vitamin D, and calcium intake, physical activity, cigarette smoking, alcohol use, and depressive symptoms as covariates. RESULTS: Depressive symptoms were independently associated with lower BMD T score in participants with high job strain (??=?-0.241, p?=?0.02), but depressive symptoms were not significantly associated with BMD in the low (??=?-0.160, p?=?0.26) and intermediate (??=?-0.042, p?=?0.66) job strain categories. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that job strain modifies the association between depressive symptoms and BMD. Depressed individuals with high work-related stress might be in increased risk of lower bone mineral density. HubMed – depression

MEASURING DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA.

Depress Anxiety. 2013 Jun 18;
Sweetland AC, Belkin GS, Verdeli H

BACKGROUND: Despite being one of the leading causes of disability worldwide, fewer than 10% of depressed individuals in low-resource settings have access to treatment. Mounting evidence suggests that nonspecialist workers are capable of providing counseling and case management at the community level. They often use brief psychiatric screening instruments as clinical tools to identify cases and monitor symptoms over time. In order for such tools to be used in diverse settings, they must demonstrate adequate reliability and validity in addition to cross-cultural relevance. To be used to guide routine care they also need to be flexibly adapted and sensitive to change. The goal of this paper is to assess the cross-cultural validity of brief psychiatric screening instruments in sub-Saharan Africa, identify best practices, and discuss implications for clinical management and scale-up of mental health treatment in resource-poor settings. METHOD: Systematic review of studies assessing the validity of screening instruments for depression, anxiety, and mental distress in sub-Saharan Africa using Medline and PsycINFO. RESULTS: Sixty-five studies from 16 countries assessing the validity of brief screening instruments for depression, anxiety, and/or mental distress. CONCLUSIONS: Despite evidence of underlying universality in the experience of depression and anxiety in sub-Saharan Africa, differences in the salience, manifestation, and expression of symptoms suggest the need for the local adaptation of instruments. Rapid ethnographic assessment has emerged as a promising, low-cost, and efficient strategy for doing so. HubMed – depression

Quality of life is significantly impaired in long-term survivors of acute liver failure and particularly in acetaminophen-overdose patients.

Liver Transpl. 2013 Jun 18;
Rangnekar AS, Ellerbe C, Durkalski V, McGuire B, Lee WM, Fontana RJ

Functional outcomes for long-term survivors of acute liver failure (ALF) are not well characterized. The aim of this prospective study was to determine health-related quality of life in long-term adult ALF survivors. Acute Liver Failure Study Group registry participants completed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Health-Related Quality of Life 14 and Short Form 36 (SF-36) questionnaires at 1- and/or 2-year follow-up study visits. Responses were compared among ALF subgroups and to those for available general US population controls. Among the 282 adult ALF patients, 125 had undergone liver transplantation (LT), whereas 157, including 95 acetaminophen overdose (APAP) patients and 62 non-APAP patients, were spontaneous survivors (SSs). APAP SS patients reported significantly lower general health scores and more days of impaired mental and physical health, activity limitations due to poor health, pain, depression, and anxiety in comparison with the other groups (P?14 days of impaired physical/mental health and activity limitations due to poor health. In addition, a greater proportion of LT recipients reported >14 days of impaired physical/mental health. Similar results were observed with the SF-36 across the 3 ALF subgroups and in comparison with population controls. In conclusion, long-term adult survivors of ALF reported significantly lower quality of life scores than US population controls. Furthermore, APAP SS patients reported the lowest quality of life scores, possibly because of higher rates of premorbid psychiatric and substance abuse disorders. Liver Transpl, 2013. © 2013 AASLD. HubMed – depression

severe depression treatment at home – severe depression treatment at home Official Website : http://tinyurl.com/cure-it-now-and-forever Just listen to these success stories that prove the Depress…