Cureus | Bright-light therapy is simple, safe and cost-effective, researchers conclude

Bright-light therapy is simple, safe and cost-effective, researchers conclude

Jan 06, 2022 | NEWS

 

An article published in Cureus was recently picked up by Upstate Medical University. 

"People with seasonal affective disorder have sought relief through bright lights during the dark days of winter.

Could light therapy help those who are hospitalized with nonseasonal unipolar depression?

Unipolar or major depression involves persistent sadness and negative emotions, as opposed to bipolar depression, which includes periods of mania.

Not much research exists on this topic, so a team from Upstate’s departments of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and public health and preventive medicine decided to find out.

“A way to augment pharmacotherapy and attain a breakthrough from the debilitating symptoms of depression is needed, especially in the inpatient setting, where the most severe cases are treated,” Upstate’s director of inpatient psychiatry, Luba Leontieva, MD, PhD, writes with colleagues in the journal Cureus. The team included psychiatry resident Alyssa Trinh, MD; psychiatric observer and research volunteer Pratik Jain, MBBS; psychiatric nurse practitioner Shaikh Sabahath; Dongliang Wang, PhD, statistician from the department of public health and preventive medicine; and psychiatrist James Megna, MD, PhD."

Read the full article here.