Psychiatry News and Research

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

New research: Retired NFL players more likely to misuse painkillers

Retired NFL players use painkillers at a much higher rate than the rest of us, according to new research conducted by investigators at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

28 Jan 2011

Cognitive training may help end hijacking of imagination by drugs of abuse

The growing numbers of new cases of substance abuse disorders are perplexing. After all, the course of drug addiction so often ends badly. The negative consequences of drug abuse appear regularly on TV, from stories of celebrities behaving in socially inappropriate and self-destructive ways while intoxicated to dramatization of the rigors of drug withdrawal on "Intervention" and other reality shows.

28 Jan 2011

Triggering CD45 molecule blocks early development of AD

A new target for the prevention of adverse immune responses identified as factors in the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD) has been discovered by researchers at the University of South Florida's Department of Psychiatry and the Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair.

27 Jan 2011

Potential therapy to enhance memory and prevent loss of long-term memory

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have identified a therapy that may enhance memory and prevent the loss of long-term memory. The research is published in the January 27th issue of Nature.

27 Jan 2011

Mental health laws delayed to take into account public opinion

The Victorian government has extended the closing date for public comment on changes to the state’s Mental Health Act. The deadline has been extended to February 28. Submissions on the Exposure Draft Mental Health Bill 2010 can be lodged online.

26 Jan 2011

Arizona State University sponsored forum addresses child health crises in America

Richard Carmona, MD, MPH, FACS, 17th Surgeon General of the U.S. (2002-2006), said there is "no choice but to act" today to find solutions to the child obesity epidemic and mental health problems in the nation at a forum attended by more than 200 health leaders at the National Press Club. Dr. Carmona made his remarks at "America's Children at Peril: Solving the Child Obesity and Mental Health Epidemics," a forum sponsored by Arizona State University and its College of Nursing & Health Innovation.

25 Jan 2011

New study on pain-relieving effect of transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation

The medical device company cerbomed cooperated with the Clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy of the University of Regensburg 2010 on a randomized, controlled study into somatosensory pain processing. The study, lead by Prof. Dr. Peter Eichhammer and Dr. Volker Busch, aimed to judge the pain-relieving effect of transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation (t-VNS).

25 Jan 2011

Alexza's AZ-004 Phase 3 study in agitated patients with schizophrenia published in British Journal of Psychiatry

Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that the British Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, has published the results of the pivotal Phase 3 study evaluating AZ-004 (inhaled or Staccato® loxapine) for the rapid treatment of agitation in patients with schizophrenia, in its January 2011 edition (198:51-58).

24 Jan 2011

FDA approves Clinical Data's Viibryd for major depressive disorder

Clinical Data, Inc., today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved vilazodone HCl tablets, to be marketed under the brand name Viibryd™, for the treatment of adults with major depressive disorder (MDD).

24 Jan 2011

MGH research sheds light on mechanisms of action of mindfulness-based training

Participating in an 8-week mindfulness meditation program appears to make measurable changes in brain regions associated with memory, sense of self, empathy and stress. In a study that will appear in the January 30 issue of Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, a team led by Massachusetts General Hospital researchers report the results of their study, the first to document meditation-produced changes over time in the brain's grey matter.

24 Jan 2011

PGxHealth receives FDA approval for Viibryd tablets to treat major depressive disorder

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Viibryd tablets (vilazodone hydrochloride) to treat major depressive disorder in adults.

24 Jan 2011

NIMH awards Case Western Reserve $7.8M renewal grant to study manic symptoms in children

The Department of Psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has received a $7.8 million renewal grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) for the long-term study of manic symptoms in children.

21 Jan 2011

Perceived threat, rather than actual events, predict brain adaptation

A study of soldiers who took part in the ISAF mission in Afghanistan between 2008 and 2010 has found that their brains adapt when they are continuously exposed to stress. The perceived threat appears to be the major predictor of brain adaptation, rather than the actual events. In other words, if a roadside bomb goes off right in front of you, the degree to which you perceive this as threatening is what counts. This is what determines how the brain and the stress system adapt.

21 Jan 2011

Major breakthrough: Genome-based medicine for treatment of alcoholism

For the first time in alcohol addiction research, UVA investigators have successfully treated alcohol-dependent individuals with medication that is tailored specifically to match their genetic profile.

21 Jan 2011

Health Canada approves Labopharm's OLEPTRO for treatment of Major Depressive Disorder

Labopharm Inc. today announced that Health Canada's Therapeutic Products Directorate (TPD) has approved OLEPTRO, a novel once-daily formulation of the antidepressant trazodone, for the symptomatic relief of Major Depressive Disorder in adults.

21 Jan 2011

Autism Speaks Autism Treatment Network adds 17 sites in Canada and the U.S

Autism Speaks and Autism Speaks Canada who together form North America's largest autism science and advocacy organization, is pleased to announce the expansion of its Autism Treatment Network to include 17 leading children's hospitals and academic medical centers in the Canada and the U.S.

20 Jan 2011

Adult children of divorce are more likely to have suicidal ideation

Adult children of divorce are more likely to have seriously considered suicide than their peers from intact families, suggests new research from the University of Toronto.

20 Jan 2011

Positive top-line results from TC-5619 Phase 2 trial in patients with schizophrenia

Targacept, Inc. today announced positive top-line results from a Phase 2 clinical proof of concept trial to assess TC-5619 as an augmentation therapy to improve cognition in patients with schizophrenia.

20 Jan 2011

Only half of adolescents affected with severely impairing mental disorders receive treatment

A recent study by Merikangas and colleagues published in the January 2011 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (JAACAP) shows that only half of adolescents that are affected with severely impairing mental disorders ever receive treatment for their disorders.

19 Jan 2011

Loyola introduces wheelchair yoga program for hospitalized patients

"There is a growing body of evidence to support the use of yoga as a health and healing tool and a complement to standard medical interventions and therapy," said Dr. Walsh, assistant professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

19 Jan 2011