HealthDay (12/8, Thompson) reports a systematic review and meta-analysis of 7 trials found that “treatment with nitrous oxide can provide rapid relief for people with depression, especially those who aren’t helped by antidepressants.” The researchers “looked at the use of laughing gas for treating depressive disorders like major depression, treatment-resistant depression and bipolar depression. Results showed that a single treatment with nitrous oxide provided at a 50% concentration produced rapid and significant reductions in depression symptoms within 24 hours.” Although the “single-treatment results did not last longer than a week,” researchers also “found that repeated doses of laughing gas over several weeks led to longer-lasting, more reliable relief.” The review was published in eBioMedicine. (SOURCE: APA Headlines)