Psychosis News and Research

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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.''

New case study describes adolescent patient with rapid-onset schizophrenia and Bartonella infection

In a new case study, researchers at North Carolina State University describe an adolescent human patient diagnosed with rapid onset schizophrenia who was found instead to have a Bartonella henselae infection.

19 Mar 2019

Mother's treatment for infection during pregnancy increases child's risk for autism and depression

Risks for autism and depression are higher if one's mother was in hospital with an infection during pregnancy. This is shown by a major Swedish observational study of nearly 1.8 million children.

8 Mar 2019

Study finds neuromelanin-sensitive MRI as potential biomarker for psychosis

Researchers have shown that a type of magnetic resonance imaging -- called neuromelanin-sensitive MRI is a potential biomarker for psychosis.

18 Feb 2019

Cannabis use as a teenager linked to depression later in life

A new study has shown that at least 400,000 cases of adults with depression in the US could have been avoided if greater measures were in place to discourage teenage use of cannabis. The results of this new study were published this week in the latest issue of the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

13 Feb 2019

Cannabis use among adolescents linked with increased risk of depression in adulthood

While there has been a lot of focus on the role of cannabis use in psychosis, there has been less attention on whether cannabis use is associated with an increased risk of common mental health disorders, such as depression and anxiety.

13 Feb 2019

Marijuana edibles carry risk and side effects for patients with cardiovascular disease

As marijuana legalization sweeps North America, use of the substance has been on the rise, and the public's attitude is shifting. An increasing number of people believe that "weed" is the safest recreational drug, one that carries health benefits that outweigh its risks.

11 Feb 2019

Patients with psychosis have accelerated aging of cognitive networks, study finds

Patients with psychosis have accelerated aging of two brain networks important for general cognition—the frontoparietal network (FPN) and cingulo-opercular network (CON)—according to a new study in Biological Psychiatry.

7 Feb 2019

New drug for sleeping sickness approved in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Marketing authorization of fexinidazole for the treatment of Trypanosoma brucei gambiense human African trypanosomiasis (HAT), more commonly known as sleeping sickness, has been granted in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

31 Jan 2019

New guidelines developed for effective management of neuropsychiatric symptoms of Huntington’s disease

Although Huntington's disease (HD) is traditionally thought of as a neurological disorder, behavioral symptoms are a common feature and frequently cause distress and difficulty to patients, family members, and other caregivers.

30 Jan 2019

Association between tobacco use and paranoia is largely due to shared genetic influences

Paranoia is associated with regular tobacco smoking in adolescents after accounting for other factors like cannabis use, sleep disturbances and stressful life events, reports a study recently published to the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

25 Jan 2019

Copy number variants linked with 'schizophrenia-like' subtype of bipolar disorder

A form of rare genomic structural variation called copy number variants (CNVs) may be more closely associated with schizophrenia than bipolar disorder.

25 Jan 2019

Outdated commissioning methods are failing mental health services in the UK, reveals report

A new report published today by the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson highlights that mental health services in the UK are falling behind physical health services, due to healthcare providers using outdated commissioning methods.

From J&J Innovative Medicine 16 Jan 2019

B-group vitamins may be beneficial for people with first episode psychosis

B-group vitamins may be beneficial for maintaining concentration skills among people experiencing a first episode of psychosis, a study by researchers from Orygen, the National Centre of Excellence in Youth Mental Health, has found.

16 Jan 2019

Newsom diverges sharply from Washington with health care budget

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday unveiled his first state budget, one that leads California down a very different health care path than the one Washington has forged.

11 Jan 2019

Study reveals increase in potency and price of cannabis across Europe

Cannabis resin and herbal cannabis have significantly increased in potency and in price, according to the first study to investigate changes in cannabis across Europe.

2 Jan 2019

New research lays out potential path for treatment of Huntington’s disease

New research gives scientists a clearer picture of what is happening in the brains of people with Huntington's disease and lays out a potential path for treatment.

14 Dec 2018

Findings reinforce guidelines for cautious use of antipsychotics in younger populations

Children and young adults without psychosis who are prescribed high-dose antipsychotic medications are at increased risk of unexpected death, despite the availability of other medications to treat their conditions, according to a Vanderbilt University Medical Center study published today in JAMA Psychiatry.

13 Dec 2018

$Chronic, refractory schizophrenia patients benefit from targeted cognitive training$

Chronic, refractory schizophrenia patients benefit from targeted cognitive training

Schizophrenia is among the most difficult mental illnesses to treat, in part because it is characterized by a wide range of dysfunction, from hallucinations and mood disorders to cognitive impairment, especially verbal and working memory, which can be explained in part by abnormalities in early auditory information processing.

6 Dec 2018

Study shows correlation between childhood infections and increased risk of mental disorders

A new study from iPSYCH shows that the infections children contract during their childhood increase the risk of mental disorders during childhood and adolescence. This knowledge expands our understanding of the role of the immune system in the development of mental disorders.