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Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency and Depression

Depression is an illness that one can not usually overcome on their own. Depressed individuals usually need people to listen to them talk. Many times it is hard to find individual who are just willing to listen and not judge or make quick decisions about the person. Depressed individuals want their problems to be validated, not told that they should just pull themselves together.

Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency is also commonly referred to as ADA deficiency. This is an inherited condition in which a person has an immune deficiency disease that results from a lack of the enzyme adenosine deaminase. This disorder affects both males and females equally. It usually leads to death within the first couple of months of life. ADA deficiency accounts for about twenty percent of all cases of immunodeficiency. ADA in infants usually shows itself by some bone abnormalities. If it occurs later in life, they the person shows signs of susceptibility to any type of infection. They are not easily able to fight off illness. If an individual develops this later in life, many times they develop warts. Only through a physical exam and a series of tests, can doctors diagnose this illness, and rule out if being something else.

Individuals, who are afflicted with this illness, often live in an enclosed environment, since the individual can be exposed to any elements that may cause an infection, which could further compromise the person’s immune system. ADA deficiency is causes an increase in dATP which inhibits S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase, which causes an increase in S-adenosylhomocysteine. dATP and S-adenosylhomocysteine have a toxic affect on lymphocytes, causing them to be defective.

ADA and Depression
ADA plays an essential role in the functioning of the immune systems. Depression has been shown to accompany individuals with immune issues. Individuals with ADA, are often cut off from other individuals and the environment around them, this increases their chances of becoming depressed. Most depressed individuals have a greater likelihood of developing some type of immune illness. As depression lowers your ability to do the healthy things in your life, your body reacts to these things and many times your immune system begins to suffer.

Treatments for Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency
They are some treatments that are available to individuals with Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency. All of these treatments have an upside and downside to them, so it is important to research each one carefully, before deciding which treatment is best suited for the level of your illness.
1. Bone marrow or stem cell transplantation from a haploidenticial donor is an option for a minority of individuals.
2. Some individuals can benefit from enzyme therapy. This is an option if a bone marrow transplant is not an option. This involves directly adding missing adenosine deaminase. This is done through a transfusion of missing red blood cells. Some individuals on this treatment experience depressed antibody responses as untreated ADA deficient patients. Direct enzyme injections are a better method for helping ADA individuals.
3. In some cases, gene therapy has also helped to create functional ADA and T-cells, and improved the overall health of the individual afflicted with this illness.

As with any illness, and especially one as serious as Adenosine Deaminase Deficiency, individuals are more likely to suffer from depression. It is important that family and close friends try and help the individual through their illness and through the depression. They should support the person, and understand the problems they are facing, they should try and find individual with similar illnesses, and possible join a support group. This way the personal does not feel like they are the only ones with this illness. Hearing others stories, can provide comfort to the person. Always understand the individual’s needs, they did not ask to be ill or depressed so they need their family and friends to not judge but to be supportive.  Gather as much information regarding the illness so that you have a good handle on what treatments are available and what are the best approaches that can help this individual with this illness. Remember never try and cheer the person up and try and get them to believe the situation is not as bad as it is. Your role should be to support the person and getting them to get the help that they need.

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