Biomedical subjects

Peter Gaszner

Publications and source records attributed to Peter Gaszner.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Culturally-sensitive complaints of depressions and anxieties in women.

BACKGROUND: Current classifications of Mental Disorders are centered on Westernized concepts and constructs. "Cross-cultural sensitivity" emphasizes culturally-appropriate translations of symptoms and questions, assuming that concepts and constructs are applicable. METHODS: Groups and individual psychiatrists from various cultures from Asia, Latin America, North Africa and Eastern Europe prepared descriptions of main symptoms and complaints of treatment-seeking women in their cultures, which are interpreted by clinicians as a manifestation of a clinically-relevant dysphoric disorder. They also transliterated the expressions of DSM IV criteria of main dysphoric disorders in their cultures. RESULTS: In many non-western cultures the symptoms and constructs that are interpreted and treated as dysphoric disorders are mostly somatic and are different from the Western-centered DSM or ICD systems. In many cases the DSM and ICD criteria of depression and anxieties are not even acknowledged by patients. LIMITATIONS: The descriptive approach reported here is a preliminary step which involved local but Westernized clinicians-investigators following a biomedical thinking. It should be followed by a more systematic-comprehensive surveys in each culture. CONCLUSIONS: Westernized concepts and constructs of mental order and disorders are not necessarily universally applicable. Culturally-sensitive phenomena, treatments and treatment responses may be diversified. Attempts at their cross-cultural harmonization should take into consideration complex interactional multi-dimensional processes.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Major depression and the synthetic enhancer substances, (-)-deprenyl and R-(-)-1-(benzofuran-2-yl)-2-propylaminopentane.

Because of the high number of therapy-resistant depressions and the growing number of suicides, there is still a great need for the development of antidepressants with a new pharmacological spectrum. The finding that phenylethylamine and tryptamine are endogenous enhancers of the impulse propagation mediated release of catecholamines and serotonin in the brain, and the development of synthetic enhancer substances opened the possibility to stimulate catecholaminergic and serotonergic neurons in the brain stem via a previously unknown mechanism. (-)-Deprenyl, a prototype of the phenylethylamine-derived synthetic enhancer substances, stimulates the catecholaminergic neurons in the brain but is almost ineffective on the serotonergic neurons. R-(-)-1-(benzofuran-2-yl)-2-propylaminopentane, (-)-BPAP, the recently developed tryptamine-derived selective synthetic enhancer substance, is a hundred times more potent enhancer of the catecholaminergic neuronal activity than (-)-deprenyl, and is also a highly potent stimulant of the serotonergic neurons. Evaluation of the peculiar pharmacological profile, the high potency and unusual safeness and tolerability of (-)-BPAP cherish the hope that this compound by itself and in combination with uptake inhibitors may improve the effectiveness of drug therapy in major depression and diminish the number of therapy resistant cases.

Animals↗

PubMed2005

About the menopausal depression.

BACKGROUND: According to studies performed in the last some years, several factors may increase the risk for depression during menopause to occur. Perimenopause, the period mostly associated an increase in the rate of depressive symptomatology, is characterised by decline of estrogen level. But the other changing reproductive physiology, as progesterone, inhibin level, CNS activity of gonadal steroids may have role in depression during menopause. METHODS: We enrolled 40 patients with major depression (women's age range 39-51 years). In the open label clinical trial 10-10 of them had fluoxetine, estrogen, the combination of fluoxetine and estrogen or fluoxetine and cognitive psychotherapy. The measurement was made by the Clinical Global Impression Scale. Duration of the treatment was six weeks. RESULTS: From the 10-10 depressed patients 4 improved by estrogen, 6-6 by the combination of antidepressant and estrogen or fluoxetine alone, but 8 with combination of antidepressants cognitive psychotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of antidepressant and psychotherapy the best solution for the treatment of menopausal depression, but the therapy must be individual.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

The use of the synthetic enhancer substances (-)-deprenyl and (-)-BPAP in major depression.

There is still a great need for the development of antidepressants with a new pharmacological spectrum. The finding that phenylethylamine and tryptamine are endogenous enhancers of the impulse propagation mediated release of catecholamines and serotonin in the brain, and the development of synthetic mesencephalic enhancer substances opened the possibility to stimulate catecholaminergic and serotonergic neurons in the mesencephalon via a previously unknown mechanism. (-)-Deprenyl, a prototype of the phenylethylamine-derived synthetic enhancer substances, stimulates the catecholaminergic neurons in the brain but is almost ineffective on the serotonergic neurons. R-(-)-1-(benzofuran-2-yl)-2-propylaminopentane, (-)-BPAP, the recently developed tryptamine-derived selective synthetic mesencephalic enhancer substance, a hundred times more potent compound than (-)-deprenyl, acts also on the serotonergic neurons. The evaluation of the special pharmacological profile of the synthetic mesencephalic enhancer substance, especially the high potency and the unusual safety and tolerability of (-)-BPAP provide hope that this compound may in the future significantly improve the effectiveness of drug therapy in major depression and its combination with uptake inhibitors may substantially diminish the number of therapy resistant cases.

Benzofurans↗