Posted by llurpsienoodle on December 16, 2008, at 19:38:26
In reply to Re: Chemical testing for anxiety and depression... » jms600, posted by azalea on December 16, 2008, at 18:23:57
There have been dexamethasone suppression tests available to psychiatrists for several decades. This test measures the cortisol response. Sure, it indicates some imbalance, but isn't really strongly correlated with severity of depression, and certainly not with selection of effective treatment.
I second linkadge- there's not strong evidence for the "neurotransmitter" theory of depression/anxiety/ etc.
Our brains are so much more than a handful of neurotransmitters. There's many many NT's and other interesting little communication molecules. There's bloodflow, there's activation of genes, long term changes resulting from metabolic stress... so many things happen to minds that are somewhat "disorganized".
Are the signs a *cause* of mental illness, or a *result* of mental illness?
If the *cause* of an illness is known, -sometimes- it helps us determine appropriate treatments. other times, not so much. AIDS is a challenge, on the vaccination front. Down Syndrome has a well-known cause, but one that cannot be remedied. However, what some might not know is that early speech therapy and occupational therapy and other interventions can help a child with Down's syndrome have a real chance to grow up surrounded by typically-developing peers.
Maybe it's not about fixing us, but rather about helping our suffering. I dunno.
********I think psychiatry would LOVE to get a reliable test to help them figure out which molecule to tweak in order to alleviate our suffering.
My former pdoc: "When all you've got is a hammer, the whole world looks like a nail"
-Ll
poster:llurpsienoodle
thread:869127
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20081214/msgs/869151.html