title: Depression-related cognitive impairment: possibilities for its pharmacological treatment.
abstract: Depression-related cognitive impairment (DRCI) is a condition which despite its initial treatment response, shows a progressive deterioration. No consistent therapeutic strategies have been proposed to combat this condition. This may be due to a reluctance to treat the cognitively impaired, a failure to recognise the deleterious prognosis or a poor understanding of the likely pathogenesis. Increasing evidence implicates the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis as a key neurobiological determinant of the presentation and course of depression-induced cognitive decline. By utilising agents which control central glucocorticoid hyperactivity over a sustained period, whilst avoiding those agents which may compromise cognitive abilities, there exists a pharmacological strategy which may minimise the morbidity of cognitive impairment related to depressive illness.
authors.affiliation: Psychiatric Services for the Elderly, Fulbourn Hospital, Cambridge, UK.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Mitchell
authors.forename: T R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Dening
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D004565:Electroconvulsive Therapy; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000097:blood*; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System
chemical_list: D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D005938:Glucocorticoids; D006854:Hydrocortisone