JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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Falls among elderly individuals occur frequently, increase with age, and lead to substantial morbidity and mortality. The role of vitamin D in preventing falls among elderly people has not been well established. ⋯ Vitamin D supplementation appears to reduce the risk of falls among ambulatory or institutionalized older individuals with stable health by more than 20%. Further studies examining the effect of alternative types of vitamin D and their doses, the role of calcium supplementation, and effects in men should be considered.
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Review Meta Analysis
Treatment of depression in patients with alcohol or other drug dependence: a meta-analysis.
Depression and substance abuse are common and costly disorders that frequently co-occur, but controversy about effective treatment for patients with both disorders persists. ⋯ Antidepressant medication exerts a modest beneficial effect for patients with combined depressive- and substance-use disorders. It is not a stand-alone treatment, and concurrent therapy directly targeting the addiction is also indicated. More research is needed to understand variations in the strength of the effect, but the data suggest that care be exercised in the diagnosis of depression-either by observing depression to persist during at least a brief period of abstinence or through efforts by clinical history to screen out substance-related depressive symptoms.