While the disease Hepatitis C can cause patients to become depressed, a standard treatment for it, interferon, can also cause varying degrees of depression, including thoughts of suicide, say researchers at Loyola University.

In fact, anywhere from 10-40% of hepatitis C patients will become depressed during the course of their illness.

Interferon can cause depression because it affects the level of serotonin, a neurotransmitter which helps in mood-regulation.

In a review article, Dr. Murali S. Rao and his team examined the complexities of sorting out the causes of depression in hepatitis C patients and effectively treating it.

Rao suggests that patients with a history of depression and suicide should be carefully screened and evaluated prior to treatment with interferon.

In addition, treatment with a class of antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) - which includes such medications as Zoloft, Celexa and Prozac - has been shown to be effective in patients receiving interferon therapy.

The study was published in the International Journal of Interferon, Cytokine and Mediator Research.

Antidepressant use may be doing more harm to patients than good, according to Paul Andrews, a evolutionary biologist at McMaster University.

"We need to be much more cautious about the widespread use of these drugs," he said in an article published in the online journal Frontiers in Psychology.  "It's important because millions of people are prescribed anti-depressants each year, and the conventional wisdom about these drugs is that they're safe and effective."

Andrews and his research team came to this conclusion after examining previous studies comparing the risks versus the benefits of various antidepressants.

Antidepressants can cause unwanted side effects because their action is not limited to the brain, where they work to increase serotonin and relieve depression.   Serotonin also has effects all throughout the body, where it is involved in such diverse processes as digestion, blood clot formation, reproduction and development.

Some of the areas of risk identified by the researchers include:

• Developmental problems in babies
• Problems with sexual function and sperm development
• Digestive problems
• Abnormal bleeding and stroke in the elderly

In the elderly in particular, the researchers noted that there was an increased risk of death among antidepressant users.

Andrews suggests that with all of these negative effects to consider, it may be wise to reevaluate the routine usage of these drugs.

The journal is available online at http://www.frontiersin.org/.

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Newer antidepressants, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and Effexor, may be able to help relieve depression in Parkinson's disease patients without aggravating disease symptoms, such as tremor or rigidity, researchers say.

In a study of 115 Parkinson's disease patients, the study subjects were treated with either Paxil (an SSRI), Effexor or an inactive placebo pill.  The patients were then followed for 12 weeks, during which time their depression symptoms improved while the motor symptoms associated with the disease did not worsen.

On average, patients taking Paxil had a 59% improvement, while those taking Effexor had a 52% improvement.  Patients receiving the placebo also experienced improvement, although it was significantly lower at 32%.

"Depression is the number-one factor negatively affecting the quality of life for people with Parkinson's disease," said study author Dr. Irene Hegeman Richard.  "It causes a great deal of suffering among patients.  The great news here is that it's treatable.  And when the depression is treated adequately, many of the other symptoms become much more manageable for patients."

Depression in Parkinson's disease is caused by the disease itself, not the stress of dealing with a chronic illness, Richard noted.

Treating this depression can be difficult because care must be taken to not exacerbate the symptoms of the disease.

The study was published in the April 17, 2012 issue of Neurology.