New Treatments For Depression: The Cutting Edge

It is not a simple matter to find the perfect depression treatment for you. Even if some methods have been very effective for people that you know, this does not mean that they will work just as well for  you. Thus, with the ever changing technology and new researches being made towards the advancement of managing and treating psychological problems, don't close your doors to new treatments for depression that your psychiatrist may present to you.

Treatment Options

The manner of treating depression varies depending on the types and levels of the problem at hand. Corollarily, new treatments for depression may be traditional, sole or combined, or revolutionary in rare cases.

Medication and psychotherapy, some experts believe, are basic and musts in treating depression. Others however, would look at newer, albeit revolutionary and cutting-edge, treatments as far better, and more effective than traditional methods of treatment.

Vagus Nerve Therapy

One recent form of therapy developed for depression is the vagus nerve stimulation therapy which came about in 1997. It was approved as a treatment form for depression that that have been considered to be  "treatment-resistant" or TRD.

The vagus nerve stimulation therapy, or simply VNS therapy, relies on the implanting of the VNS therapy device into a patient, with the device wire-hooked into the vagus nerve, which connects to brain regions that are associated with moods and mood changes. The VNS therapy device stimulates the vagus nerve by delivering electrical currents to the nerve at strictly monitored and regular periods and intervals.

Other Cutting Edge Treatments for Depression

Positron emission tomography or PET is now being used to analyze patterns of brain activity in the limbic and cortical areas and comparing the patterns of normal individuals with those of depressed ones. The analysis will reveal the increased activity level at the onset of depression and may help doctors determine early on the medication or therapy to prescribe.

Imaging technologies like MRI and functional imaging are also being used to analyze neuro-transmitter concentrations and activities. These imaging tools show and provide information and patterns on which areas of the brain have increased or reduced serotonin activity in normal individuals compared to patients suffering from depression.

With recent research studies consistently revealing links between epilepsy and depression, the VNS therapy treatment was thus adopted for depression, whereas it used to be an epilepsy treatment only. Similar to this is the NCP (Neuro-Cybernetic Prosthesis) System, which is basically a pulse generator that stimulates nerves through electrodes.

Another new treatment for depression is the TMS system which stands for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation. Unlike the more invasive electro-convulsive therapy, the TMS may be administered without anesthesia and has no side effects of possible memory loss and other risks linked to general anesthesia administration. The TMS system passes currents via electromagnetic coils that generate a magnetic field. The currents work to de-polarize the neurons in the brain.

Acupuncture is also being used to address depression. Then there is also light therapy that uses bright lights, either sunlight or artificial, to treat some types of depression like atypical or seasonal depression. Meditation is also being widely espoused by depression treatment centers. Meditation is seen to encourage calmness and rationality among depression and anxiety sufferers.

With better, newer tools to diagnose depression and anxiety, and with more and newer choices for treatment, depression is continuously being addressed clinically and individually. These new treatments for depression that are available now will pave the way for the reintegration and treatment of depression sufferers to bring them back into the social mainstream.

Are They Effective?

These new treatments for depression are said to be effective, according to their inventors and those who advocate their use. The test for their effectiveness still lies with the person who will be treated. If it works for you, then you may decide to stick to it even if it is still a new form of treatment and hasn't been tested much. After all, the field of psychiatry and psychology is not an exact science. There are no hard and fast rules on how to get well from anxiety and depression.