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Depression may be related to the same brain mechanisms that control the cycles of sleep and wakefulness. Depression may be related to abnormalities in the circadian rhythm, [22] or biological clock. A well synchronized circadian rhythm is critical for maintaining optimal health.
The neurotrophic hypothesis of depression [1] proposes that major depressive disorder (MDD) is caused, at least partly, by impaired neurotrophic support.Neurotrophic factors (also known as neurotrophins) are a family of closely related proteins which regulate the survival, development, and function of neurons in both the central and peripheral nervous systems.
“Depression is a lot of different things with a lot of different causes, biological changes and treatments,” said Dr. Richard Keefe, professor emeritus of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at ...
One reason depression is thought to be a pathology is that it causes so much psychic pain and distress. However, physical pain is also very distressful, yet it has an evolved function: to inform the organism that it is being damaged, to motivate it to withdraw from the source of damage, and to learn to avoid such damage-causing circumstances in the future.
Biological psychiatry or biopsychiatry is an approach to psychiatry that aims to understand mental disorder in terms of the biological function of the nervous system.It is interdisciplinary in its approach and draws on sciences such as neuroscience, psychopharmacology, biochemistry, genetics, epigenetics and physiology to investigate the biological bases of behavior and psychopathology.
In physiology and medicine, depression [1] refers to a lowering, in particular a reduction in a specific biological variable or the functions of an organ. It is the opposite of elevation. For example, it is possible to refer to "depressed thyroid function" or to a depression of blood flow in a particular area. Further examples:
It's possible that sundowning in dementia patients is caused by a combination of hormonal changes, brain deterioration or damage that has occurred, environmental factors, disruption to a person's ...
Depression is a significant mental illness with physiological and psychological consequences, including sluggishness, diminished interest and pleasure, and disturbances in sleep and appetite. [1] It is predicted that by the year 2030, depression will be the number one cause of disability in the United States and other high-income countries. [2]