Psychosis News and Research

RSS

Psychosis means abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality". People suffering from psychosis are said to be ''psychotic.''

Testosterone’s role in schizophrenia

Researchers from Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA) have presented new results about the role of testosterone in schizophrenia at the International Congress on Schizophrenia Research being held in Orlando, Florida.

26 Apr 2013

Antihistamine drugs work by preventing histamine from attaching to H1 receptors

Itchy eyes, scratchy throat, running nose--it's allergy season! What triggers these allergic reactions, and how do allergy medications work?

26 Apr 2013

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB): an interview with Dr. Jennifer Cohn, Médecins Sans Frontières

MDR-TB is tuberculosis, a mycobacterial infection, that has developed resistance to two important and powerful first-line anti-TB drugs, INH and rifampin.

26 Apr 2013

Schizophrenia cardiovascular risk under-recognized in primary care

UK researchers have found that despite being a major contributor to premature deaths among patients with schizophrenia, cardiovascular disease is less likely to be recorded on their primary care records than people without schizophrenia.

25 Apr 2013

Research shows early access to cognitive behavioural therapy can reduce risk of psychosis

Young people seeking help who are at high risk of developing psychosis could significantly reduce their chances of going on to develop a full-blown psychotic illness by getting early access to cognitive behavioural therapy, new research shows.

From The University of Manchester 19 Apr 2013

Targacept moving forward with Phase 2b study of TC-5619 for treatment of schizophrenia

Targacept, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel NNR Therapeutics, today announced that it has completed recruitment of patients in the Phase 2b study of TC-5619 as a treatment for negative symptoms and cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia.

19 Apr 2013

Excess glutamate drives schizophrenia in high-risk individuals

An excess of the brain neurotransmitter glutamate may cause a transition to psychosis in people who are at risk for schizophrenia, reports a study from investigators at Columbia University Medical Center published in the current issue of Neuron.

19 Apr 2013

State highlights: Blue Shield could lose exclusive contract for Calif. workers, retirees; Texas health commission asks for increase in Medicaid premiums

Blue Shield of California may be losing its longtime grip on one of the health care industry's most coveted insurance contracts. Officials at the California Public Employees' Retirement System are recommending breaking up Blue Shield's current statewide HMO contract and replacing it with as many as four health plans for more than 400,000 public workers and their families (Terhune, 4/11).

12 Apr 2013

REFRESH study: RP5063 shows promise for schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder

Reviva Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held drug discovery and development company, today announces top-line results from REFRESH, a phase 2 clinical trial of RP5063 for the treatment of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

10 Apr 2013

Compulsory community treatment not found to reduce hospitalisation rates of mentally ill patients

The controversial practice of discharging people under Community Treatment Orders (CTOs) after they have been involuntarily hospitalised due to mental health problems has no effect on the patients’ likelihood of being subsequently hospitalised, compared to Section 17 leave, an older and less restrictive type of supervised discharge, according to a randomised trial published Online First in The Lancet.

26 Mar 2013

Primary care providers need training to recognize early symptoms of psychosis

Primary care providers could help people with warning signs of psychosis get critical early treatment and potentially reduce the current burden on emergency departments and inpatient units, finds a study in the journal Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology.

24 Mar 2013

New testing technologies can help fight TB, but new treatments needed

"[F]or many low-income populations, [tuberculosis (TB)] is nothing less than a modern-day public health emergency," and "[t]o make things worse, many of these patients [a]re living with HIV," U.N. Under-Secretary General and UNITAID Chair Philippe Douste-Blazy writes in a Huffington Post "Impact" blog opinion piece.

22 Mar 2013

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) patients and Médecins Sans Frontières medical staff call for urgent action

If measures to tackle multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) are not significantly stepped up, including addressing barriers that prevent both research into better drug combinations and treatment scale up, MDR-TB rates will continue to increase worldwide and a historic opportunity to improve abysmal cure rates will have been squandered, medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières warned today.

20 Mar 2013

Report: Patients with mental health problems need culturally sensitive treatment

Members of the Deaf community who suffer from mental health problems need culturally sensitive treatment to avoid misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment, according to a report in the March Journal of Psychiatric Practice.

13 Mar 2013

Antipsychotic drugs associated with increased risk of stroke in the elderly

Antipsychotic administration in the elderly is associated with an increased risk for cerebrovascular accident, more commonly known as stroke; a new study published in Biological Psychiatry provides additional insight into this important relationship.

12 Mar 2013

Treating substance abuse alone helps patients with co-occurring psychosis

Patients with co-occurring substance use disorder and psychiatric disorders may benefit from standard substance use disorder treatment, with the effects potentially lasting for several years, the results of a US study indicate.

7 Mar 2013

Quitting cannabis may not alleviate psychosis

The amount of cannabis used does not appear to be associated with the severity of symptoms in patients with established psychosis, although the drug is linked to a small effect on psychosocial functioning, say UK scientists.

5 Mar 2013

KMO gene variant associated with increased production of kynurenic acid

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have found an explanation for why the level of kynurenic acid (KYNA) is higher in the brains of people with schizophrenia or bipolar disease with psychosis. The study, which is published in the scientific periodical Molecular Psychiatry, identifies a gene variant associated with an increased production of KYNA.

5 Mar 2013

Otsuka receives FDA approval for ABILIFY MAINTENA to treat schizophrenia

Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Otsuka) and H. Lundbeck A/S (Lundbeck) announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved ABILIFY MAINTENA (aripiprazole) for extended- release injectable suspension, an intramuscular (IM) depot formulation indicated for the treatment of schizophrenia.

1 Mar 2013

Modifiable risk factors found for violence in schizophrenia

Researchers have identified modifiable risk factors for increased violence in people with psychosis that could prove important for risk assessment and management.

20 Feb 2013

Psychosis News and Research

Further Reading

Testosterone’s role in schizophrenia

Antihistamine drugs work by preventing histamine from attaching to H1 receptors

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB): an interview with Dr. Jennifer Cohn, Médecins Sans Frontières

Schizophrenia cardiovascular risk under-recognized in primary care

Research shows early access to cognitive behavioural therapy can reduce risk of psychosis

Targacept moving forward with Phase 2b study of TC-5619 for treatment of schizophrenia

Excess glutamate drives schizophrenia in high-risk individuals

State highlights: Blue Shield could lose exclusive contract for Calif. workers, retirees; Texas health commission asks for increase in Medicaid premiums

REFRESH study: RP5063 shows promise for schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder

Compulsory community treatment not found to reduce hospitalisation rates of mentally ill patients

Primary care providers need training to recognize early symptoms of psychosis

New testing technologies can help fight TB, but new treatments needed

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) patients and Médecins Sans Frontières medical staff call for urgent action

Report: Patients with mental health problems need culturally sensitive treatment

Antipsychotic drugs associated with increased risk of stroke in the elderly

Treating substance abuse alone helps patients with co-occurring psychosis

Quitting cannabis may not alleviate psychosis

KMO gene variant associated with increased production of kynurenic acid

Otsuka receives FDA approval for ABILIFY MAINTENA to treat schizophrenia

Modifiable risk factors found for violence in schizophrenia

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Latest News