As an EMT I witness numerous people weekly that suffer from severe mental illness. It seems that the treatment methods that are currently available are, at best, insufficient. Many hospitals are ill prepared to treat the mind and training in most health care works is a single piece to a one thousand piece puzzle. Mental health treatment needs a breakthrough, perhaps ones that will come from genetics. Researchers have recently found a genetic link between schizophrenia, biopolar disorder, autism, major depressive disorder, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. It was shown that there are some genetic “glitches” present in the population suffering from these mental illnesses. Researchers seem to believe that the presence of these genes leads to a predisposition to these illnesses; however, other factors also play an important role.
Researchers were able to find disruptions in some of the brain’s major signaling pathways. This new information may aid in the development of new treatments. It has also been determined that the same change in the DNA in very close family members can result in two very different diseases. Four genes have been marked as possibly having an effect on mental health. In two the causality of the disorder is unknown; however, two of the genes have been shown to be a part of calcium channels. Calcium channels are used in the brain in order to transmit signals.
There already drugs on the market that effect the calcium channels. These drugs are currently used to treat high blood pressure. A doctor at Massachusetts General Hospital is currently working to seek approval to experiment using calcium channel blockers currently used as high blood pressure medications to treat mental illnesses. This study has the potential to open many new doors for treatment of mental illness, something that this country truly needs.
Original Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/01/health/study-finds-genetic-risk-factors-shared-by-5-psychiatric-disorders.html
Blog on Same Topic: http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/shared-genes-link-depression-schizophrenia-and-three-other-mental-illnesses-201303015944
I think that a lot of times the treatments themselves can be helpful, but in the case of my best friend with bipolar disorder, a lot of times with people with mental illness, getting them to take their medicine is half the battle.
ReplyDeleteI think it would be interesting to see how effective the meds for high blood pressure would be in the case of mental illness.
It's very interesting that the same mutation can cause different mental disorders. That shows that there is a closer connection between these different disorders then was originally believed. I wonder what causes a person to get one disorder and another with the same mutation to get a different one. It is also interesting that they found a connection between mental disorders and calcium channels since the calcium channels are used when neurons send signals in the brain. We already knew some disorders are caused abnormal amounts of certain chemicals in the brain so this discovery furthers that knowledge and will hopefully lead to better treatments.
ReplyDeleteThe genetic link between the listed mental illnesses is a remarkable finding for the future of treatment for patients. Hopefully, the knowledge of this connection and further information on the predisposition mutations of these genes will cause help researchers lessen the symptoms and treat these illnesses.
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting and I agree with the previous comments above. I know someone who has a mental disorder and they have been diagnosed with depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia so it makes sense that these disorder are genetically related.
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