Understanding and Discussing the Mind-Body Connection Aids in the Diagnosis and Management of Depression

Paris (ots/PRNewswire) -

- With Photo

- Experts call for doctors and people with depression to break the
silence

Eight in ten doctors (84 percent) say their colleagues need to be
educated on the mind-body link while nearly two-thirds (63 percent)
are concerned about misdiagnosing depressed patients with a pain
condition due to possible confusion around the link that experts
agree exists between the mind and the body,(1) according to the
results of a survey presented today at the European regional meeting
of the World Organisation of Family Doctors (WONCA).

Findings from the Mind-Body Connection Survey suggest that
understanding and discussing this mind-body connection can play a
vital role in improving diagnosis and the management of depression
for the estimated 121 million people worldwide who suffer from the
condition.(2)

Depression and pain have been shown to share biological pathways
and chemicals, known as neurotransmitters,(3) within the central
nervous system that are involved in the transmission, regulation and
perception of both emotions and pain.(4)

"These results underline the importance of understanding the
mind-body connection," commented Dr. Gabriel Ivbijaro, Chairman of
the WONCA Working Party on Mental Health, which co-commissioned the
survey with the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH). "Treatment
of depression should address the full range of emotional and painful
physical symptoms in order to achieve remission and reduce the chance
of relapse. We call on doctors to probe their patients for these
symptoms and therefore help people to break their silence," Dr.
Ivbijaro urged.

Impact of Physician-Initiated Dialogue on Patient Diagnosis

An overwhelming majority of general practitioners or GPs (85
percent) believe understanding the mind-body connection helps doctors
reach diagnosis more quickly. However, far fewer GPs (70 percent) are
currently probing for painful physical symptoms as part of their
depression diagnosis. Interestingly, more GPs are likely to probe for
these symptoms if they have a deeper understanding of the mind-body
connection (82 percent of those who understand the connection
compared to 54 percent of those who do not).

Impact of Physician-Initiated Dialogue on Depression Management
and Recovery

The survey showed that patients whose doctors initiated a
discussion about the emotional and the physical symptoms of
depression saw a positive impact on depression management and
recovery. Nearly nine out of 10 physicians (82 percent) believe that
treating painful physical symptoms is important in achieving
remission, the accepted goal of depression treatment.

Additionally those people with depression who had discussed the
link with their physician:

-- understood how their treatment would work to relieve their symptoms
(82 percent of those who discussed the mind-body connection with their
physician understood how their treatment would work, while just
67 percent of those who did not discuss the link with their physicians
understood their treatment); and
-- believed that treating both physical and emotional symptoms would help
them to recover more quickly (81 percent of those who discussed the
mind-body connection with their physician believe it is important to
treat both physical and emotional symptoms, while just 64 percent of
those who did not discuss the connection with their physicians
believed in the importance of treating these symptoms)(1)

Positive Impact of Understanding the Mind-Body Connection

For people with depression, their understanding of the link was
also shown to play a positive role in the management of their
condition. Those who expressed a deeper understanding of the
mind-body connection:

-- waited a full one year less before discussing their symptoms with
their GP as compared with those who did not express such understanding
(those who understood the mind-body connection waited 90 weeks and
those who did not understand it waited 148 weeks);
-- were more likely to have a discussion about the connection with their
GP (73 percent of those who understood the mind-body connection
discussed the connection with their GP but only 53 percent of those
who did not understand the connection discussed it with their GP); and
-- were more likely to believe that treating both emotional and pain
symptoms would help them recover more quickly (91 percent of those who
understood the mind-body connection believed that treating both
emotional and pain symptoms would help them recover more quickly,
while only 61 percent of those who did not understood the mind-body,
believed this)(2)

Preston Garrison, Secretary General and CEO of the WFMH and
co-commissioner of the Mind-Body Connection Survey commented, "The
WHO estimates that depression will rank second only to heart disease
by 2020 in terms of global disability , so we urgently call on groups
representing people with depression to embrace the mind-body
connection and encourage others to break the silence and reduce
needless suffering."

Based on the survey findings, WONCA and WFMH are planning to
provide GPs with an educational program to increase awareness of the
mind-body link and its role in the management and treatment of
depression in the hope of improving diagnosis, treatment and recovery
rates.

The Mind-Body Connection Survey is part of the WFMH's Breaking
Through Barriers depression awareness campaign, a public education
initiative designed to improve the worldwide standard of care in
depression. The campaign is co-sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company and
Boehringer Ingelheim and the survey was commissioned by the WFMH and
WONCA in collaboration with Eli Lilly and Company and Boehringer
Ingelheim.

NOTES TO THE EDITOR

Mind-Body Connection Survey -- Methodology

These surveys were conducted online within France, Germany,
Mexico, Brazil, and Australia by Harris Interactive on behalf of
WONCA and WFMH between July 12, 2007 and August 20, 2007.

A total of 252 adults (aged 18 and over) who have received at
least one prescription treatment for depression in the past year and
are treated by a physician were surveyed. Harris also surveyed 501
GPs who are actively practicing and who see a minimum of five
patients for depression per month, with at least three and no more
than 20 years experience in the field.

With samples of this size, one could say with a 95 percent
probability that the overall results would have a sampling error of
plus or minus 6 percentage points for the consumer portion and 4.38
percentage points for the physician portion of the study. Sampling
error for data based on sub-samples would be higher and would vary.
Analyses of all sub-sample comparison included in this backgrounder
are statistically significant at a 95 percent confidence level.

Survey Sub-Groups

People who deeply understood or did not understand the mind-body
connection were defined as follows:

People with depression who understand the mind-body connection were
defined as:
Those who strongly agreed or somewhat agreed to the following
statements:
-- There is medical evidence to prove that your mind has an impact
on how your body feels (mind-body connection)
-- There is a link between pain and emotional symptoms
-- Emotional and pain conditions often occur together because of a
shared neurological pathway
GPs who understand the mind-body connection were defined as:
Those who strongly agreed or somewhat agreed to the following
statements:
-- There is medical evidence to prove that a mind-body connection
exists
-- Serotonin and noradrenaline are involved in the regulation of
emotional and pain perception
-- Emotional and pain conditions often occur together because of
a shared neurological pathway

About the WFMH

The World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) is an international
interdisciplinary membership organization whose mission is to
promote, among all people and nations, the highest possible level of
mental health in its broadest biological, medical, educational, and
social aspect. Consultative status at the United Nations provides
WFMH a variety of opportunities to engage in mental health advocacy
at the global level, working closely with the World Health
Organization, UNESCO, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the UN
Commission on Human Rights, the International Labor Organization and
others.

About WONCA

The World Organization of Family Doctors (WONCA) represents and
acts as an advocate for its constituent members at an international
level where it interacts with world bodies such as the World Health
Organization. WONCA is made up of national colleges, academies or
organizations concerned with the academic aspects of general family
practice. Beginning with 18 members in 1972, there are now 97 member
organizations in 79 countries. This includes eight organizations in
collaborative relations with WONCA. In all, the total membership of
the member organizations of WONCA is over 200,000 general
practitioners/family physicians.

The WONCA Working Party on Mental Health was established in
October 2006 and serves as a focus for the development of mental
health issues for WONCA worldwide.

References:
(1) The Mind Body Connection Survey; Conducted by Harris Interactive 2007
(2) World Health Organization. Factsheet - Depression, 2005.
http://www.who.int/mental_health/management/depression/definition/en/
(3) Bair MJ et al. Depression and Pain Comorbidity. A Literature Review;
Archives of Internal Medicine: Vol. 163 No, 20, November 10 2003
(4) Basbaum AI and Fields HL. Endogenous Pain Control Systems: Brainstem
Spinal Pathways and Endorphin Circuitry. Ann. Rev Neurosci.
1984 7:309-38
(5) Murray CJL, Lopez AD, eds. The Global Burden of Disease; 1996.

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Note to Editors:

A picture accompanying this release is available from the Euorpean
Pressphoto Agency (EPA) at http://www.epa-photos.com

ots Originaltext: Breaking Through Barriers
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Contact:
Rita Martins of Weber Shandwick Worldwide, +44-(0)-207-067-0210, for
Breaking Through Barriers ; Photo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071019/CLF011LOGO-a, PRN Photo
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