Psychiatry News and Research

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

TeleMedTM announces launch of TeleMedTM Psychiatry

TeleMedTM announces the launch of TeleMedTM Psychiatry, a first-of-its-kind telepsychiatry solution designed to give mental health providers and patients scheduled access to one another through secure online video therapy, regardless of location.

3 Nov 2012

Sleep experts advise people to reset sleep habits when they reset clocks

On Sunday morning, the clocks will fall back to mark the official end of daylight savings time. Northwestern Medicine sleep experts warn that the one hour time shift can be disruptive to sleep patterns, but that it also offers an excellent opportunity to evaluate and improve sleep patterns.

3 Nov 2012

UC Santa Barbara reports key discovery in interdisciplinary study of split-brain research

UC Santa Barbara has reported an important discovery in the interdisciplinary study of split-brain research. The findings uncover dynamic changes in brain coordination patterns between left and right hemispheres.

3 Nov 2012

Cannabis use causes temporary cognitive breakdown in non-psychotic individuals: Study

Researchers at the University of Bergen in Norway have found new support for their theory that cannabis use causes a temporary cognitive breakdown in non-psychotic individuals, leading to long-term psychosis.

3 Nov 2012

Study shows anxiety-promoting parental behaviors affect children

Parents with social anxiety disorder are more likely than parents with other forms of anxiety to engage in behaviors that put their children at high risk for developing angst of their own, according to a small study of parent-child pairs conducted at Johns Hopkins Children's Center.

3 Nov 2012

Sexual obsessions linked to suicidality

Sexual obsessions are associated with an increased risk for suicidal behaviour, especially in patients with mood disorders or schizophrenia, research shows.

2 Nov 2012

TD-1211 may relieve opioid-induced constipation

TD-1211 – an inhibitor of the mµ-opioid receptor – alleviates chronic noncancer-related constipation in patients receiving opioid therapy, without affecting pain relief, show the results of a parallel-group study.

2 Nov 2012

MH6 vaccine shows promise in treating meth addiction

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have performed successful tests of an experimental methamphetamine vaccine on rats. Vaccinated animals that received the drug were largely protected from typical signs of meth intoxication.

2 Nov 2012

Antipsychotic drugs associated with increased mortality among people with schizophrenia

Results of a Johns Hopkins study suggest that individuals with schizophrenia are significantly more likely to live longer if they take their antipsychotic drugs on schedule, avoid extremely high doses and also regularly see a mental health professional.

2 Nov 2012

Study explores impact of IL1β on brain function alterations associated with schizophrenia

There are a growing number of clues that immune and inflammatory mechanisms are important for the biology of schizophrenia. In a new study in Biological Psychiatry, Dr. Mar Fatjó-Vilas and colleagues explored the impact of the interleukin-1β gene (IL1β) on brain function alterations associated with schizophrenia.

2 Nov 2012

FoXTROT results: preoperative chemo could become new standard

Preoperative chemotherapy is a feasible option for resectable advanced colon cancer, show results of the FoXTROT trial.

1 Nov 2012

Psychotic symptoms increase suicidality risk in adolescents

The presence of psychotic symptoms is associated with a significantly increased risk for suicidal behavior in adolescents, research shows.

1 Nov 2012

Treatment rate high at end of life for prostate cancer patients

Approximately one-third of men with castration-resistant prostate cancer receive some form of treatment in the last 3 months of life, show US study results.

1 Nov 2012

Dysfunction in SRGAP3 protein causes developmental brain disorders

A new research discovery has the potential to revolutionize the biological understanding of some childhood psychiatric disorders. Specifically, scientists have found that when a single protein involved in brain development, called "SRGAP3," is malformed, it causes problems in the brain functioning of mice that cause symptoms that are similar to some mental health and neurological disorders in children.

1 Nov 2012

Brain's infralimbic cortex can switch between new and old habits

Habits are behaviors wired so deeply in our brains that we perform them automatically. This allows you to follow the same route to work every day without thinking about it, liberating your brain to ponder other things, such as what to make for dinner.

1 Nov 2012

Controlling depression can improve health status and social functioning in patients with heart failure

Controlling depression in patients with heart failure can improve health status, social functioning and quality of life, according to a new study by psychiatrists and cardiologists at the UC Davis and Duke University schools of medicine.

1 Nov 2012

Affordable Medicines Facility improves access to anti-malarials

The Affordable Medicines Facility-malaria has resulted in significant improvements in the availability and price of quality-assured artemisinin-based combination therapies in seven African countries after 1 year, show study findings published in The Lancet.

31 Oct 2012

Genetic counseling benefits relatives of schizophrenia patients

Genetic counseling is generally welcomed by the family members of patients with schizophrenia and can provide lasting benefits, say researchers.

31 Oct 2012

BWH researchers propose new model that shifts how we think about mindfulness

Achieving mindfulness through meditation has helped people maintain a healthy mind by quelling negative emotions and thoughts, such as desire, anger and anxiety, and encouraging more positive dispositions such as compassion, empathy and forgiveness. Those who have reaped the benefits of mindfulness know that it works. But how exactly does it work?

31 Oct 2012

ESDM intervention can change brain function in toddlers with autism spectrum disorders

An autism intervention program that emphasizes social interactions and is designed for children as young as 12 months has been found to improve cognitive skills and brain responses to faces, considered a building block for social skills. The researchers say that the study, which was completed at the University of Washington, is the first to demonstrate that an intensive behavioral intervention can change brain function in toddlers with autism spectrum disorders.

31 Oct 2012