Depression in the News 1999

Out of Darkness. Boston Globe. December 20, 1999. By Judy Foreman When sun is in short supply, artificial light may lift seasonal depression. The article is about SAD, seasonal affective disorder. The symptoms are depression, lack of energy, sleeping too much, eating too much, and gaining weight. Symptoms begin in the fall or winter and often last until spring, when the days get progressively longer - until the summer solstice in June, when the cycle starts over again. An estimated 10 million Americans have severe SAD and three times that many have milder forms. Scientists aren't sure why light helps boost mood, though some suspect the secret lies with melatonin.

The Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health was released on Monday, December 13, 1999. Commissioned in 1997 by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Report represents a vast amount of scientific evidence underscoring three fundamental messages:
     · Severe mental illnesses are brain disorders.
     · Treatment works, if you can get it.
     · Discrimination against individuals with mental illnesses is wrong.
As a comprehensive public health report, the Report documents the effects of untreated mental illness on consumers and their families, in particular, and on society, as a whole. It recognizes that many people who need help are not receiving it, and that barriers such as stigma, discrimination, cultural insensitivity, poor professional training, and system fragmentation continue to keep people from receiving the treatments that are available.
The report is available on the Surgeon General's website
You can listen to a discussion of the report on the PBS NewsHour show from December 13, 1999. Dr Thatcher, the Surgeon General is among those interviewed. The discussion is 13 minutes.  PBS also has a transcript of the discussion available.

Physicians and patients should look beyond the guidelines recommended by drug manufacturers.
December 6, 1999. Newsweek Magazine.  The lowest recommended dose of Prozac is 20mg a day, but the author of this article tells of some of his patients who could not tolerate such a dose. He notes that testing had shown that 54 percent of depressed patients required only 5mg of Prozac. The main point of the article is that people respond very differently to medications depending on weight, age and inborn ability to process drugs. This is why some patients require 80mg of Prozac a day while others need as little as 2.5mg. Other drugs mentioned in the article are Motrin, blood-pressure drugs (Norvasc, Vasotec, Zestril, Prinivil) , Lipitor (for high cholesterol), Allegra (for allergies) and Celebrex (for arthritis). The article says there are more than 2 million severe adverse drug reactions every year and that most of them occur at the very doses that manufacturers recommend. The article goes on to explain how this has happened and why it continues. It also describes steps you can take to protect yourself and still get the treatment you need.
http://www.newsweek.com/nw-srv/focus/he/fohe0223_1.htm
Note that there is audio that accompanies the article, but it requires QuickTime version 4. There is a link on the Newsweek web page to where you can download QuickTime from Apple, but this requires supplying your name and E-mail address.

November 29, 1999. The Boston Globe. Judy Foreman. It's not at all clear how SAM-e might combat depression. It does not work as Prozac-type drugs do, by blocking re-uptake of serotonin. It may act by improving the elasticity of cell membranes or by stabilizing receptors on cell membranes, but this is unproved. Still, there's evidence that some depressed people may be low in SAM-e, and that taking SAM-e supplements may help. Several studies suggest that SAM-e can boost serotonin levels. Other evidence suggests SAM-e may also raise levels of dopamine and norepinephrine, two other brain chemicals often involved in depression. Yet even psychiatrists who recommend SAM-e are cautious. Says one: "It is not a good first-line drug. It's something to consider as a possible alternative when other things have failed." The use of SAM-e may be appropriate for patients who can't tolerate side-effects of other antidepressants. In order for the body to make SAM-e, a person must have adequate levels of folate (which in turn is made from folic acid, a vitamin) and vitamin B-12. (In fact, adding folate to standard antidepressants may increase their benefit). If you try SAM-e, do so under a doctor's supervision, assuming you can find a doctor open-minded enough to read what research is available.
http://www.boston.com/globe/search/stories/health/health_sense/112999.htm

November 19, 1999. Wall Street Journal. Health Journal column by Marilyn Chase. Page B1.
There is a growing interest among mental health professionals in setting up web sites that allow people to test themselves for clinical depression as a first step towards diagnosis and treatment. The National Mental Health Association (NMHA) plans to unveil a new site December 1st for depression screening at depression-screening.org. The article stresses that this is a screening rather than a diagnosis. Another online depression test is available at MediConsult.com. The article discusses the inherent limitations of testing for depression online and reviews security issues surrounding the entering of personal information on an unsecured web site.
Note that the debut of the depression-screening web site has been postponed from December 1, 1999 until later the same month.
The Wall Street Journal does not make its articles available for free on the web. You can however, sign up for a free two week trial at wsj.com and gain access to all articles from the paper. They also have a one day pass to their web site for seventy five cents that provides access to "All the news from The Wall Street Journal".

November 7, 1999. The New York Times. To most employers, the "reasonable accomodation" required by Americans With Disabilities Act conjures up wheelchair ramps and other physical changes to assist workers with physical handicaps. But what does "accomodation" mean for workers suffering from depression? Applying the law to depression is a problem for employers and employees alike. Attempts by the EEOC to clarify how depression fits in under the law have failed to resolve some important issues. In many a workplace, depression is regarded as a character flaw rather than a treatable illness, and some employers follow what amounts to a don't ask, don't tell policy, implicitly expecting workers to soldier on in silence or be stigmatized as "not up to the job." Experts say that failing to deal with the problems of depressed employees is economically shortsighted. Several studies have found that getting depressed workers into treatment is cost-effective because the workers' restored productivity, even if not 100 percent, still outweighs the cost of treatment.
For information on obtaining articles from the New York Times, click here.  
This article refers to a recent study on the subject published in Health Affairs, a journal of health policy. The September  - October 1999 issue can be purchased online for $12.

November 1, 1999. Teenage Suicide: The Silent Threat. Investigative Reports TV show on the A&E cable network. An examination of teenage suicide from the perspective of family members, mental-health experts and a survivor of an attempted overdose. The show looks at depression, which is considered to be the main cause, and how to spot the signs in a person considering the act. Read more about this show at the official web site.

Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison, is a professor of psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine who suffers from bipolar disorder. She is the author of the best seller An Unquiet Mind A Memoir Of Moods And Madness. Her current book, Night Falls Fast: An Understanding of Suicide, was published in September 1999. You can read more about her books and purchase them by clicking on the book titles here. Doing so will result in a referral fee being paid by Amazon to MDSG at no cost to you.

• November 1999. ABC News. Dr. Jamison reads from her new book and talks about her experience with suicide.
• November 1999. A review of Night Falls Fast: An Understanding of Suicide appeared in the November issue of the MDSG newsletter, MOODS.
• October 25, 1999. Dr. Jamison appeared in an online chat session at the Barnes and Noble web site to discuss her book Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide.  
• October 12, 1999. Dr. Jamison was interviewed by Charlie Rose on 60 Minutes II on CBS, where she discussed her own suicide attempt.
• March 4, 1999. Dr. Jamison appeared in an online chat about manic depression for Good Morning America.
• Spring/Summer 1999 edition of Newsweek magazine. Dr. Jamison wrote an article about her experiences from a women's perspective both as a psychiatrist and as a someone who suffers from manic-depression. Quoting from the article: "Discrimination against the mentally ill is sanctioned in ways that are inconsistent with a civilized society." 

October 25, 1999. The Oprah Winfrey TV Show. Marie Osmond is a working mother with her own TV show and seven children. Recently, Marie told TV Guide magazine that she has been battling depression since July, following the birth of her seventh child. In her first television interview on the subject, Osmond joins Oprah to talk about why she almost walked away from her husband and family. She also discusses the treatment she's currently receiving for her condition. An expert offers solutions and encouragement to depressed mothers. At the official web site for the show, you can order transcripts.
http://www.oprah.com 

October 31, 1999  Teen Suicide.  
Suicide is the third leading cause of death among young people ages 15 to 24, and one of every five teens report that they have "seriously considered" suicide. We look at the very latest in research on teen suicide, plus, what every parent wants to know. Read more about this show at the official web site.
October 24, 1999 Managing Madness. How managed care is managing (or perhaps mismanaging) mental health. Why do insurance companies still provide radically different care and treatment for mental illness than other health problems? Read more about this show at the official web site.
For more information about the Infinite Mind show from MDSG and a summary of two of their mood disorder related shows from 1998, click here.

October 14, 1999. CBS Medscape. By Elizabeth Saenger, Ph.D., Medical Writer. There are many symptoms of depression and your age and ethnicity often affect which symptoms are experienced. For example, compared to adults, children are less likely to suffer from loss of appetite and shifts in their sleep patterns and are more likely to feel depressed or irritable, lose pleasure in their hobbies and friends, or have thoughts about suicide. The article explains similar symptom variations in teens, the elderly and various ethnic groups.
http://cbs.medscape.com/medscape/p/G_library/article.asp?RecID=15&Channel=18

Patients See Benefits In Electroconvulsive Therapy.
October 6, 1999. Many misperceptions exist about the use of electroconvulsive therapy as a treatment for mental illness. A study released in the October issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings seeks to dispel these myths by showing that patients who receive ECT are overwhelmingly satisfied with the treatment. ECT is primarily used on patients who have not benefited from medicine and psychotherapy, as well as those too ill to wait weeks for new medications to kick in.Over the years numerous improvements have been made to make ECT more effective and less dangerous.
On the web site of the Mayo Clinic, you can read either a press release or the detailed report.
The story was also covered by the Medical Tribune News Service on the Intelihealth web site
Patient Groups Criticize Federal Report on Shock Therapy
October 11, 1999. Reuters. Preliminary information from the US Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health, due to be released in December, has evoked a critical response from consumer advocates who claim that the report offers a "sugar-coated" description of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).
Federal Report Praising Electroshock Stirs Uproar
October 6, 1999.  New York Times. By Erica Goode. National Desk.
A preliminary draft of the United States Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health, not yet released to the public, has touched off an uproar among some consumer advocates, who say it gives too rosy and uncritical a picture of electroshock therapy....For information on obtaining articles from the New York Times, click here.  
Implant May Zap Depression
October 12, 1999. Associated Press. An experimental depression therapy involving tiny electric shocks to the brain was just approved for study at 15 hospitals around the country. A pacemaker like device is implanted in the chest of the patient with wires up the neck that zap the vagus nerve every few minutes. Known as vagus nerve stimulation, this treatment was initially approved by the FDA for severe epilepsy. The vagus nerve leads into one of the brains most mysterious regions. The results of a pilot study involving patients who had failed all other treatments was called "not definitive".
This AP story is available from Intelihealth,   CBS and PsycPORT. It was also covered by Time Magazine.
Last Year: there were three stories from 1998 that we linked to about an alternative to ECT that involves magnets.
Web Sites: Unrelated to the above stories, click here for a list of web sites about ECT from the GO network.

September 27, 1999. AScribe and PsycPORT. A new class of antidepressant drugs may be on the horizon as scientists develop a better understanding of the hormonal link between stress and depression. Studies have found that approximately half of patients with major depression have high levels of cortisol, a hormone triggered by stress. Now, recent research suggests that high cortisol levels might be a cause of depression, rather than a symptom, as previously thought. However, the article notes that not all people who have high cortisol levels develop depression, and not all depressed patients have high cortisol levels, so genetic and environmental factors are undoubtedly important. 
http://www.psycport.com/news/1999/09/27/Ascribe/harvest_Ascribe93849340891112794.html
The March 1999 issue of the MDSG newsletter had an article on the relationship between stress and depression.

December 9, 1999. St. John's Wort Helps Beat the Blues, Study Says.
Extracts of the herb St. John's Wort can safely help mild to moderately depressed people beat the blues, according to research in the Dec. 11 issue of the British Medical Journal. St. John's Wort extract eased depressive symptoms significantly more than placebo pills and to about the same extent as imipramine, a tricyclic antidepressant. However, the St. John's Wort used in the study may not be available in the U.S. where it is not regulated. Like tea or coffee, different products on the market contain different concentration of ingredients. 
November 30, 1999. St. John's Wort Revisited. The depression guide at about.com relates her two years of experiences taking St. John's Wort.
August 26, 1999. The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) has published a Questions &Answers fact sheet on St. John's Wort. This was done in conjunction with an ongoing study, the first U.S. large-scale controlled clinical trial to assess whether St. John's Wort (Hypericum) has a significant therapeutic effect in patients with clinical depression.

August 4, 1999. For one third of those suffering with depression, sleeplessness can provide temporary relief. A new study finds that sleep deprivation can increase brain activity and decrease clinical depression symptoms for some patients. Researchers from the University of California at Irvine compared brain activity of 36 depressed patients and 26 non-depressed volunteers. They took PET scans of each group following a normal night's sleep and after a sleepless night. After a sleepless night, one third of the depressed patients showed high levels of metabolic activity in the part of the brain that regulates emotion. They also had lower readings on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale after sleep deprivation. However, these patients relapsed after one night of sleep, indicating that the benefits of sleeplessness wear off quickly. The story does not mention that a lack of sleep can bring on mania.
http://go.drkoop.com/news/stories/august/depression.html
This link is to the American Journal of Psychiatry abstract of the story. There is also has a link to full text of the story here.
http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/156/8/1149

August 4, 1999. New York Times. By Raymond Hernandez.   
The governor and legislature have agreed on a new plan, known as Kendra's Law, that gives the courts new authority to force mentally ill people to undergo treatment or be hospitalized against their will. Nearly 40 other states already have similar laws. Currently involuntary commitment in NY is limited to people deemed by a judge to be a danger to themselves or others. The new law will allow medical experts, relatives, case workers or roommates to petition the court to order someone to comply with treatment or else by hospitalized. A judge can initially order the mentally ill person hospitalized for 24 hours for assessment. If a doctor deems treatment as necessary, the judge can order the person to comply and can involuntarily commit the person to a hospital for up to 72 hours. During these 72 hours experts are supposed to determine if long-term involuntary hospitalization is needed. A court order can be sought only for mentally ill adults who meet several requirements such as having a history of not complying with their treatment or being hospitalized twice within 36 months or committing a violent act within four years. The law is expect to be adopted in the next few days.

• For information on obtaining articles from the New York Times, click here.    
• The NY State Assembly has information on the bill with two different identifying numbers. Using their first number you can get information on the bill at  http://assembly.state.ny.us/cgi-bin/showbill?billnum=A08477 and the full text at http://assembly.state.ny.us/cgi-bin/showtext?billnum=A08477   Using their second number, you can get information about the bill at http://assembly.state.ny.us/cgi-bin/showbill?billnum=S05762 and the full text at http://assembly.state.ny.us/cgi-bin/showtext?billnum=S05762
• The NY State Senate provides similar information about the bill under the same two numbers at 
       gopher://Leginfo.LBDC.State.NY.US:70/77/.scripts/.AllSummSearch?kendra  
• A group opposed to the bill, The Coalition to Stop Outpatient Commitment used to have a summary of the bill and a description of what they don't like about the bill on their web site, but these have either been deleted or moved.
• A press release on the subject was issued by Sheldon Silver the NY Assembly Speaker on 8/5/1999:
      http://assembly.state.ny.us/Press/19990805.html  
• Attorney General Eliot Spitzer also issued a press release on the subject
      http://www.oag.state.ny.us/press/1999/aug/aug03a_99.html  

August 1, 1999. The Administration on Aging (AoA) is joining the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in a widespread dissemination of its new fact sheet, "Older Adults: Depression and Suicide Facts," on recognizing signs of depression, reducing suicide risk in older adults, and promoting treatment. The fact sheet was unveiled at the White House Conference on Mental Health on June 7, 1999.  Nearly 2 million of the 34 million Americans ages 65 and older suffer from depression, but doctors and patients may have trouble recognizing its signs. To help identify and promote discussion of depression during medical visits, the fact sheet includes a cue card of symptoms for older adults entitled, "Before You Say, ‘I’m Fine.’" It presents questions for older adults to ask themselves to judge if they are depressed. The fact sheet also cites the role of modern brain imaging technologies, studies of genetics and brain chemistry, and a variety of effective medications and psychotherapies regarding the clinical course and treatment of late-life depression.
The fact sheet is available at http://www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/elderlydepsuicide.cfm
A press release on the subject from NIMH is at http://www.nimh.nih.gov/events/prolderadults.htm
The Administration on Aging's web site is www.aoa.gov  

July 28, 1999. The surgeon general David Satcher declared suicide a serious public health threat for the first time, launching an effort to educate school counselors, parents and even hairdressers on how to spot signs of trouble. This is the first time a surgeon general has taken up suicide - or even mental health - as an issue. A full and comprehensive report on all facets of mental health is expected by the end of 1999. The report grew out of a conference on suicide prevention in Reno, Nev., last October where experts compiled 81 recommendations, of which 15 were broadly accepted, so Satcher opted to begin work on those now. Satcher also announced a new outreach campaign to raise awareness of the issue, develop strategies to identify people at risk and improve quality of treatment. More specifically, the Clinton administration planned to help distribute a PBS video called ''Depression: On the Edge'' to school counselors to help them detect teen depression
Story in USA today   http://www.usatoday.com/life/health/mentalh/lhmhe013.htm
The actual report on the surgeon generals web site is at http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/osg/calltoaction/default.htm
The National Institute of Mental Health has a related web page for their Suicide Research Consortium
http://www.nimh.nih.gov/research/suicide.htm

July 27, 1999. The New York Times. Science Times section. by Erica Goode. Page F1. Depression proves a tenacious opponent for sufferer and doctor alike. Depression afflicts more than 19 million adult Americans. The article points out that in some cases depression is considerably more difficult to treat than drug advertisements suggest. It is estimated that 60 to 70 of the people who can tolerate the side effects of antidepressants get better with the first drug they take. However, 10 percent do not respond, even after trying multiple drugs. The term for this is "treatment-resistant" or "refractory". Researchers know little about why some people respond fully to antidepressant treatment and others do not. 
For information on obtaining articles from the New York Times, click here.  

June 25, 1999. CNN and WebMD. Many depressed people wonder: Is depression something I can think my way out of, or is it a medical problem? This article attempts to answer this question and concludes that clinical depression is the result of a complex interaction involving genetic, biochemical, environmental, social and cognitive factors. The cognitive theory of depression is only one piece of the puzzle -- though a very important one. Even when medication is required, cognitive behavioral therapy and other forms of psychotherapy are important parts of the treatment as well.
http://cnn.com/HEALTH/9906/25/depression/#0

June 24, 1999. The New York Times. By Michael M. Weinstein. Economic Scene; Business/Financial Desk
THE White House conference earlier this month on mental illness highlighted the Administration's campaign, led by Tipper Gore, to achieve ''parity for all'' -- requiring health insurers to provide the same coverage for mental illness that they provid ...
For information on obtaining articles from the New York Times, click here.  

ABC News June 23, 1999. Exercise is a cheap way to fight depression. Dozens of studies have shown that exercise really does help in cases of clinical depression. It is four to five times more cost-effective than other therapies, but is only appropriate for mild to moderate depression. Both aerobic exercise and non-aerobic exercise (such as weightlifting) are beneficial.
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/living/InYourHead/allinyourhead_48.html
Newsweek Magazine also covered this story in their June 14, 1999 issue. They describe a recent study and state that exercise may also help anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, alcohol dependence and pain managemtn.The study involved structured exercise classes and it is felt that the structure may account for some of the benefits. 
http://newsweek.com/nw-srv/issue/25_99a/tnw/today/ps/ps01mo_1.htm  
The study itself was published in Professional Psychology journal as is available on the web at
http://www.apa.org/journals/pro/pro303275.html   

A year-long investigation of Charter Behavioral Health Systems, by 60 Minutes II and Ed Bradley found falsified records,  dangerous conditions and doctors who barely spoke to their patients. Charter is the largest chain of private psychiatric hospitals in the country, they have 91 hospitals. This show was first broadcast in March 1999, then rebroadcast June 16, 1999. The web page for the story is  http://www.cbs.com/flat/story_145221.html  

June 7, 1999. The White House Conference on Mental Health was held today. Tipper Gore chaired the conference with consumers, providers, advocacy groups, business leaders, community mental health resources, and local, state and national elected officials as well as leaders in mental health research and pharmacology, service delivery and insurance coverage. The web site for the conference is www.mentalhealth.gov. The remarks by the President, the First Lady, the Vice President and Mrs. gore are available on the White House web site. The AP had a story on June 8th about the conference. One result of the conference is that Federal workers will have equal insurance coverage for physical and mental illnesses. ABC news has a story about the conference (June 18). 

June 5, 1999. The Presidents weekly radio address was about mental health and the White House conference. Quoting the President: "Monday, together with Vice President Gore and the First Lady, we will convene the first White House Conference on Mental Health. Today, Tipper and I want to talk about what me must do as a nation to fight the stigma that prevents so many Americans with mental illness from making the most of their lives." The White House web site has a transcript of the radio broadcast and the speech can also be heard or downloaded. The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill also has a transcript.

Time Magazine, June 7, 1999 issue. Subtitile: Tipper Gore has brought a welcome focus on the problem. But millions of mentally ill Americans aren't getting the treatment they need. And there's no easy fix. The article cites statistics and reviews the problems with the current mental health system. Among the statistics: only a third of those with serious depression receive any treatment. The article notes that only in the past decade have people started to see mental disorders as illnesses rather than moral shortcomings. Tipper Gore and other reformers want to convince the nation that mental illness doesn't result from bad parenting or lax churchgoing but from chemical imbalances.
http://cgi.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/articles/0,3266,25909,00.html  

Time Magazine, May 31, 1999 issue, cover story. This article is about much more than what the subtitle implies. Its a broad ranging discussion of the issue of depression in children and adolescents. Estimates are that as many as 1 in 20 American preteens and adolescents suffer from clinical depression and that a half million to a million prescriptions are written for children and teens. The major themes in this article are 1)The reluctance of some parents to put their children in antidepressants 2) The debate over whether to medicate children or not because less is known about the effect of antidepressant drugs on children and 3) Depression is harder to diagnose in adolescents than in adults. In covering the last point, the article notes that correct diagnosis is critical to avoid later problems in life, which is also covered in a story below (Teen depression often recurs in adulthood).
http://cgi.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/articles/0,3266,25407,00.html
OR  http://www.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/articles/0,3266,25407,00.html
Note: If this story hits home, anyone under age 30 is invited to attend our Youth group. Parents of depressed children can attend our Friends and Family discussion groups.

Time Magazine, May 17, 1999 issue. Competition among antidepressant drugs cuts into drug company profits, so they constantly try to find new diseases for the drugs to cure. The drugs with alternate uses discussed in this article are Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Luvox and Celexa. The various conditions that they are either approved for or prescribed for are: bulimia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, shyness (officially referred to as "acute social phobia"), migraines, anxiety disorders, attention-deficit disorder, kleptomania, post-traumatic stress, and premenstrual mood swings.
http://cgi.pathfinder.com/time/magazine/articles/0,3266,24429,00.html

May 20, 1999.  Postpartum depression is a common, but frequently unrecognized, devastating mood disorder," says Kathryn Leopold, M.D. Most women who develop postpartum depression experience symptoms within six weeks of delivery, but not within the first two weeks. While similar to the baby blues, postpartum depression is more severe and longer-lasting.
http://cnn.com/HEALTH/women/9905/20/postpartum.depression/index.html

The May 17, 1999 edition of Larry King Live:

Topic: Dealing with Depression  Guests: Roselyn Carter, former First Lady and author of "Helping Someone With Mental Illness", Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison, John Hopkins Medical Center (author of "An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir Of Moods And Madness"), Dick Cavett and Patty Duke, who has written two books about her experiences with manic depression. Transcripts of Larry King's show are made available on the CNN web site for 10 days after the show airs, so to obtain one now, requires purchasing it. We have contacted CNN about making the transcript available on our web site, but they ignored us. For information on obtaining CNN transcripts go to http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/ or you can purchase both transcripts and video tapes by calling (800) 266-6397.  

LA Times. May 17, 1999. This article is a very cursory overview of treatment options for depression. For example it states that there are 19 antidepressant medicines for seven various brain mechanisms, but goes into very little detail. It does mention however, that if you have symptoms of depression, experts advise an immediate consultation to rule out conditions such as hypothyroidism, anemia and post-viral syndromes. 
http://www.latimes.com/HOME/NEWS/HEALTH/t000044220.html

NEW YORK, May 13, 1999 (Reuters Health) -- Daily supplements of fish oil may help control the 'mood swings' of patients with bipolar disorder (manic depression), according to researchers. Omega 3 fatty acids -- compounds found in fish oil -- helped control bipolar symptoms in the short term. However, the authors of the study believe the findings must be replicated in larger studies before experts can draw any firm conclusions regarding the effectiveness of omega 3 fatty acids in the control of bipolar symptoms. The study involved only 30 patients, half of  whom received a placebo. For four months patients took daily pills containing the equivalent of five salmon steaks' worth of Omega 3.
The original research is available from the May 1999 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry at
    http://www.ama-assn.org/sci-pubs/journals/archive/psyc/vol_56/no_5/yoa8185.htm  

NEW YORK, May 12, 1999. While using a new technique to treat a patient with advanced Parkinson's disease, scientists in France have discovered a region of the brain that appears to play an important role in depression. Stimulation of electrodes implanted in the basal ganglia is used to treat some patients with Parkinson's disease. The researchers noted that one female patient began to cry and feel despondent when a specific area of her brain was electrically stimulated. As soon as the electrical stimulation stopped, the woman was happy and laughing again within a minute or two. The patient had no history of depression or any other psychiatric disorder. The authors speculated that they had temporarily stimulated nerve pathways important in the processing of unpleasant feelings. They hope for further studies to "elucidate the neural networks involved in depression".
http://www.healthcentral.com/drdean/deanfulltexttopics.cfm?ID=12269&storytype=DeanTopics
http://www.nejm.org/content/1999/0340/0019/1476.asp
http://www.nejm.org/content/1999/0340/0019/1500.asp  

NEW YORK, May 11, 1999 (Reuters Health) -- Depression that begins in adolescence often recurs in adulthood. Compared with individuals who were not depressed as teens, those who experienced major depression during adolescence also have a greater risk for suicide and attempted suicide; more impairment in work, family and social life; more medical and psychiatric hospitalizations; and lower educational achievement. Ten to 15 years after the teens' initial assessment, it was found that roughly one quarter of the individuals who had experienced depression in their teens had tried to commit suicide compared with only 5.4% of those who developed depression for the first time in adulthood.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/hl/story.html?s=v/nm/19990511/hl/te10_1.html
ABC News also covered this on May 18th. Their story says that teens diagnosed with depression are twice as likely to have problems with depression as adults and five times as likely to attempt suicide. They also have an online questionnaire to determine if teenager is depressed
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/living/InYourHead/allinyourhead_42.html  
May 12. ABC also had an online chat with Psychiatrist Dr. David Fassler about Diagnosing Teen Depression. The doctor studied early-onset depression, how it differs from the adult version and how it can be treated. 
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/living/DailyNews/chat_990512fassler.html  

NEW YORK, May 11, 1999 (Reuters Health) -- Postmortem examination of the brains of suicide victims suggests that major depression may be associated with changes in the number and size of certain brain cells. Previous research has indicated that the volume of the prefrontal cortex  is markedly smaller in depressed versus non-depressed subjects. This study found that the prefrontal cortices of suicide victims exhibited both a lower density of the large neurons and a lower density of glial cells, which supply the neurons with nutrients. Neurons taken from the brains of depressives also tended to be smaller in size than those taken from the non-depressed control subjects. These findings suggest that depression may be more than just a chemical imbalance, and may actually be a complicated physiological illness that involves both brain structure and biological processes.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/hl/story.html?s=v/nm/19990511/hl/br7_1.html

May 7, 1999. Tipper Gore, wife of the vice president, disclosed in an Op Ed article in USA Today that she was once treated for depression. In 1989 shortly after her 6 year old son recovered from a near-fatal car accident, Gore said she sought and received both counseling and medication for what she described both as a situational depression and as clinical depression. Noting that in any given year 51 million Americans suffer from a mental disorder, she said she came forward to destigmatize mental illness. Gore did not say how long her illness lasted, what her symptoms were or what medication was prescribed. Tipper Gore has previously spoken about her mother's severe depression which resulted in Margaret Ann Aitcheson being institutionalized at least twice.
The article is available on the web site devoted to an upcoming White House Conference on Mental health:  http://www.mentalhealth.gov/media2.asp Many media outlets covered the story, among them the Associated Press http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/ap/washington/story.html?s=v/ap/19990507/pl/mrs_gore_depression_1.html and the Washington Post http://search.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1999-05/08/073l-050899-idx.html

March 18, 1999. A government report from the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, on antidepressants concluded that Prozac and other drugs of its generation are not any better -- or any worse -- than older compounds in treating major depression. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) such as Prozac have been prescribed widely since they came on the market, but authors of the study suggested older drugs such as tricyclics may be better tolerated by some patients. The report also sounded a note of caution for physicians who prescribe new antidepressants for children, and for patients who are only mildly depressed: There has not been enough research to establish whether the drugs are effective in either case.
The original press release is at  http://www.ahcpr.gov/news/press/pr1999/deprespr.htm  
A detailed summary of the report is at  http://www.ahcpr.gov/clinic/deprsumm.htm
A CNN story on the subject is at: http://cnn.com/HEALTH/9903/19/antidepressants/index.html
A story by Reuters Health at http://www.healthcentral.com/News/NewsFullText.cfm?ID=10682&storytype=ReutersNews

March 8, 1999. US News and World Report. Cover Story. Depression is on the rise, despite Prozac. But new drugs could offer help.   An excellent article!  http://www.usnews.com/usnews/issue/990308/8depr.htm

March 2, 1999.  Roughly 300 employers around the country subscribe to an automated screening program for depression in which you answer recorded questions by punching numbers on the keypad, much like you would if you were calling an airline to make flight reservations. At the end of the four-minute screening, the answers are tabulated and a calm, friendly voice tells you whether you show symptoms of clinical depression. Part of the appeal is that callers remain anonymous. It has been effective in reaching people with undiagnosed depression. Roughly 78 percent of people who score positive for depression fall in the mild to moderate range. And 90 percent of people who score positive aren’t in treatment for their depression.
http://more.abcnews.go.com/sections/living/InYourHead/allinyourhead_31.html

February 7, 1999. The New York Times. By Lynette Holloway. Week in Review Desk. The Nation. 
A reporter for the Times followed a person for 8 months, during her stay at a homeless shelter for mentally ill women. Doctors and social workers were allowed to discuss her case with the reporter. While one case does not prove a point, the article states that mood disorders are a significant cause of homelessness and that diagnosing mood disorders could significantly reduce the homeless population. Diagnosis, however, can be difficult for emergency room doctors and homeless shelter operators because in later stages a mood disorder can appear like schizophrenia. In addition, the subject of the article also had headaches, heart palpitations and leg pain, all related to the mood disorder. She was correctly diagnosed and eventually was able to reclaim her life.  Many prominent people (such as Mike Wallace, Art Buchwald, William Styron, Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison) have offered public accounts of their battles with mood disorders. These people however, had safety nets, without which, a mood disorder can lead to homelessness.

January 19, 1999. The New York Times. By Sandra Blakeslee. Science Desk
Two new theories of depression are rekindling interest in the once fashionable topic of how the left and right sides of the human brain interact.