Posted by Larry Hoover on November 15, 2002, at 18:19:17
In reply to Re: prozac/effexor=dendrite shrinkage?, posted by reb on November 15, 2002, at 9:35:15
> so my next question is, if there IS damage cause by long-term use of prozac &/or other SSRI's, is it reversable? i.e., will the neurons eventually heal themselves, and if so, how?
> this brings up the idea that sometimes the "cure", when used to long, will cause the afflicted area to atrophy, instead of being strong again. think of a cast left on too long, or staying in bed too long after an injury without recieving physical therapy. why should the brain be any different?There is evidence that fluoxetine and other SSRIs helps to restore the size and connectivity of the hippocampi. There's a lot of stuff we don't know about how brain cells create connections, or how they're disconnected. Maybe healing from depression means pruning away certain connections?
Up until about a decade ago, it was common knowledge that you were born with a certain number of brain cells, and it was downhill from there. We now know that new brain cells grow when the brain is stimulated, and that connections between brain cells are not fixed and permanent. There is a new concept called neuronal plasticity which accounts for the adaptability of the brain.
In my perhaps not always humble opinion, untreated depression is a bigger danger to the brain than attempting to alleviate the depression.
poster:Larry Hoover
thread:127552
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20021108/msgs/127841.html