GPs ought not to accept hat feeling low is a side effect of a chronic condition, like diabetes, cancer or heart disease, so the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) has warned.
Those with chronic conditions are twice or thrice as likely as healthy people to be suffering from depression .
Patients who have learning difficulties could even be dying unnecessarily as the inquiry has found that depression affects your life, your physical health and could even lower life expectancy, so experts warned.
New Nice guidelines advocated vigilance in relation to looking for this condition amongst those with chronic health problems.
Prof Steve Pilling, from University College London, part of the team that produced the recommendations, stated that it ought not to be "expected" that people with chronic conditions feel depressed or down. Herein there needs to be an investigation into whether or not individuals are feeling depressed.
He warned that symptoms of depression, such as, fatigue, can frequently be similar to those related to chronic illness.
Nice recommends that family doctors ask patients with long-term conditions a short series of questions designed to show if they are potentially depressed.
Patients who could be suffering from the condition should then be given a full-scale assessment.
Research has highlighted that that depression can increase the severity of symptoms in certain long-term conditions, like Parkinson’s. However, treatments, such as, talking therapies and medication can be effective.
It is vital to consider mental health conditions not look purely at the physical.
Depression is an exceedingly common illness, with approximately 1 in 6 adults developing this condition at a certain point during their lives.
Nice recommends that antidepressants ought not be used on a routine basis for mild depression. However, they can be helpful for moderate and severe forms of depression.
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