Depression is one of the most common mental disorders, and the WHO estimates that each year there are 350 million people who suffer from depression each year.
Researchers in the USA have managed to do a blood test for depression. This not only can help the diagnosis and treatment of patients, but also can help eliminate the stigma of mental disorders are common.
Depression is one of the most common mental disorders, according to Eva Redei, professor of psychiatry at Northwestern University who developed the test.
"The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that approximately 350 million people suffer from depression every year," he said, adding, "The number is probably less of a reality."
Depression is usually diagnosed through interviews with therapists, but Redei said he switched on the biological test because he was sure depression is an illness, just like any other disease.
"That means that we can diagnose objectively," he said.
Tests were done to measure the nine characteristics, or marker, in the blood. The results can tell the doctor whether the patient is depressed.
Redei said blood markers showed improvement when patients face psychotherapy treatment for their depression.
"So it shows that perhaps we can follow how the patient responds to treatment by measuring markers in the blood," he said.
It is a small-scale study, and still have no research done before a blood test available to doctors for depression. However Redei said he was "confident" someday blood tests can be developed for other mental illnesses.
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