Treatment of depression from both biological and psychological aspects

Depression was common before COVID-19 and became the top 25 burdens of disease in 2019 according to the annual Global Burden of Disease Study. With the continued spreading of COVID-19, researchers predict that depression may increase larger in the future. With the development in both neuroscience and psychology, the major depressive disorder can be released by different kinds of methods. From the medical aspect, most of the antidepressants which are widely used can be divided into 4 types: Tetracyclic Antidepressants (TeCAs), Tricyclic Antidepressants (TCAs), Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), and Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRIs). The advantages of them involve high efficiency and can be absorbed easily. However, the main drawback of these medications is the side effects that they can cause ranging from somnolence to drowsiness after starting treatment. Research shows that some level of sexual dysfunction may occur in 40 to 65 percent of people who use SSRIs due to the sexual side effects. In this way, some of the psychological methods were explored including cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) which focus on changing the mind or opinions of the patients to achieve goals. The content of this article not only focuses on different methods to treat depression but also compares their advantages and disadvantages of them. It may provide some pieces of evidence and viewpoints for clinical decision-making.