Psychiatry News and Research

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Psychiatry is the treatment, study and prevention of mental disorders.

De novo mutations account for 50% of sporadic cases of schizophrenia

Columbia University Medical Center researchers have shown that new, or "de novo," protein-altering mutations—genetic errors that are present in patients but not in their parents—play a role in more than 50 percent of "sporadic" —i.e., not hereditary—cases of schizophrenia.

8 Aug 2011

Longer looks: Treating Down syndrome?; mentally ill, meds & trials

Politicians want to lower spending, or at least they say they do. But in all the to-and-fro over raising the debt ceiling, little sensible has been said about lowering spending in the long term. Nothing illuminates this more clearly than health care.

5 Aug 2011

Safe Kids USA to host Youth Sports Safety Clinics

With many young school athletes working hard this month to prepare for fall sports, Safe Kids USA is hosting Youth Sports Safety Clinics across the country to educate parents and coaches on how to keep children safe and prevent sports injuries, including heat-related illnesses. Nearly 3/4 of U.S. households have at least one child who plays organized sports.

4 Aug 2011

One third of patients do not receive follow-up care for depression across Ontario

Twenty-five percent of people who were hospitalized for depression were readmitted or visited an emergency room again for depression within 30 days of discharge, according to a new study by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

4 Aug 2011

RACGP urging the government to restore mental health rebates

In its submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Community Affairs regarding the Commonwealth funding and administration of mental health services, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) strongly argued for the restoration of GP mental health services. The College is gravely concerned regarding the proposed cuts to the Better Access program and the subsequent impact on mental health delivery for every patient age group, demographic and geography throughout Australia.

3 Aug 2011

Study: Subjective memory deterioration could be the first manifestation of Alzheimer's

Scientists at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Universitätsklinikum Bonn, and Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen in Bonn succeeded for the first time in demonstrating that even in merely subjective cases of memory deterioration changes may be visible in certain brain structures.

3 Aug 2011

Mood-related brain protein linked to sadness during cigarette withdrawal

Heavy smokers may experience sadness after quitting because early withdrawal leads to an increase in the mood-related brain protein monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A), a new study by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) has shown. This finding, which was published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, may also explain why heavy smokers are at high risk for clinical depression.

3 Aug 2011

Study evaluates humor and laughter in patients with COPD

Having a sense of humor is associated with improved emotional functioning and an enhanced quality of life among patients with a chronic lung illness, but the actual act of laughing out loud can reduce lung function, at least in the short term, research suggests.

3 Aug 2011

Post-traumatic stress disorder drug risperidone not working: Study

According to a new study a medication commonly used to treat post-traumatic stress disorder in combat veterans may not be effective in reducing overall PTSD severity.

3 Aug 2011

Gender based violence can lead to long term mental ailments in women: Study

According to new research, women who are victims of violence at the hands of men are highly likely to suffer mental disorders for the rest of their lives.

3 Aug 2011

Gender-based violence associated with lifetime risk of mental illness and disability

Women who experience gender-based violence such as rape, sexual assault, intimate partner violence and stalking have a higher lifetime prevalence of mental health disorders, dysfunction and disability, new Australian research shows.

2 Aug 2011

Life becomes harder after settlements for on-the-job back injuries

Financial and domestic problems for workers -- particularly those who are African-American, have lower incomes, or are younger than 35 -- get progressively worse in the years after they have settled claims for painful, on-the-job back injuries, a new Saint Louis University study finds.

2 Aug 2011

Prison research to examine neural circuitry of criminal psychopaths

A leading University of Chicago researcher on empathy is launching a project to understand psychopathy by studying criminals in prisons.

2 Aug 2011

New insight into causes of pronoun confusion in autism

Autism is a mysterious developmental disease because it often leaves complex abilities intact while impairing seemingly elementary ones. For example, it is well documented that autistic children often have difficulty correctly using pronouns, sometimes referring to themselves as "you" instead of "I."

2 Aug 2011

HHS reviewing Florida's plans for Medicaid; Iowa hospital system taking the brunt of Medicaid growth

Officials from Florida and the federal government are working on the state's plans to move all Medicaid enrollees to managed care plans. Meanwhile, Iowa is planning changes to its Medicaid program that could impact the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. And a Medicaid provider in Georgia finds anomalies in payments.

2 Aug 2011

Chronic fatigue researchers bullied, intimidated by protesters

British researchers who were focusing on psychological and mental issues linked to chronic fatigue syndrome have received death threats from protesters angry at their research area. The condition termed myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) has been studied for many years now with unclear reasoning into its causation and pathology.

31 Jul 2011

8 out of ten Australians would use genetic depression susceptibility test results to reduce risky behaviour, survey shows

Eight out of ten Australians would radically change their behaviour if tests showed they had a genetic susceptibility to depression, a national study has found.

31 Jul 2011