Psychopharmacology News and Research

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Psychopharmacology is the study of drug-induced changes in mood, sensation, thinking, and behavior.

Modafinil in combination with antidepressants reduces severity of depression more effectively

A new study has concluded that taking the drug modafinil, typically used to treat sleep disorders, in combination with antidepressants reduces the severity of depression more effectively than taking antidepressants alone.

28 Nov 2013

Cocaine addicts may become trapped in drug binges due to emotional lows, says study

Cocaine addicts may become trapped in drug binges - not because of the euphoric highs they are chasing but rather the unbearable emotional lows they desperately want to avoid.

7 Nov 2013

Lack of neurocognitive gender differences in early psychosis

Impairments in neurocognition do not occur at a higher rate in males than in females at the onset of psychosis, suggest findings published in Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry.

5 Nov 2013

Research unlocks secrets of mouse behavior to help identify promising psychiatric drugs

Developing psychiatric medications is a long and complex process. Candidate drugs are evaluated and assessed based on their effects on the behavior of animals, usually rats or mice. Each class of drugs, from antidepressants to antipsychotics, is tested differently - often in a labor-intensive process that leaves plenty of room for human error. And there is a growing consensus that current procedures fail to effectively produce new medications.

25 Oct 2013

Oxytocin shows evidence of therapeutic value for autism, schizophrenia

The hormone oxytocin could play a role in treating psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, according to a review article in the September Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

17 Sep 2013

Study finds increase in use of stimulant medications to treat children and teens with ADHD

Use of stimulant medications to treat Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in children and adolescents has increased significantly over the past several years.

11 Sep 2013

Studies suggest need for more research to better understand caffeine addiction

Studies have shown that caffeine users can become dependent on or addicted to caffeine and may have difficulty reducing their consumption, as can occur with other drugs of dependence. A comprehensive review of the current evidence on caffeine dependence is presented in an article in Journal of Caffeine Research, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

10 Sep 2013

Acute manic episodes linked to increased edema risk

Bipolar disorder patients admitted to hospital with a manic episode are at an increased risk for lower limb edema, compared with their peers with depressive or non-affective psychosis episodes, study findings show.

5 Sep 2013

Research examines people who use social networking sites to monitor their romantic partners

With the widespread popularity of social networking sites such as Facebook, it is increasingly common for people to use interpersonal electronic surveillance to monitor the activities of current and former romantic partners.

30 Aug 2013

Alcohol reduces communication in areas of brain responsible for perceiving social cues

Alcohol intoxication reduces communication between two areas of the brain that work together to properly interpret and respond to social signals, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine.

30 Aug 2013

Experts research on potential role of e-cigarettes in smoking cessation

With the third and largest of the U.S. tobacco companies planning an e-cigarette product launch this fall, this next frontier for "Big Tobacco" provides renewed presence in a declining marketplace. It's also a potential gateway to new smokers, particularly among teens and in emerging/foreign markets, according to behavioral scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

17 Aug 2013

Long-term cannabis use, dopamine and motivation: an interview with Dr Michael Bloomfield, Department of Medicine at Imperial

We classified ‘long-term’ cannabis use as being regular, at least weekly, cannabis use for over 12 months. This is the period of time that’s used in the DSM-IV psychiatric diagnostic manual to classify substance use disorders. In our study the average duration of at least weekly use was just over four and a half years.

17 Jul 2013

Highland Therapeutics subsidiary reports positive HLD-200 Phase-1 results in ADHD patients

Highland Therapeutics, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company based in the MaRS Discovery District in Toronto, today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary has generated positive Phase-1 results for HLD-200 - a novel formulation of methylphenidate being developed to treat the symptoms associated with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

25 Jun 2013

Low-dose ketamine anesthetic has potential to alleviate severe depression

Low-dose intravenous infusions of ketamine, a general anesthetic used in minor surgeries, given over a long period are an effective treatment for depression, Mayo Clinic researchers found. The study is published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology.

5 Jun 2013

First alcoholic drink during puberty increases risk of alcohol problems

Research shows that the earlier the age at which youth take their first alcoholic drink, the greater the risk of developing alcohol problems. Thus, age at first drink (AFD) is generally considered a powerful predictor of progression to alcohol-related harm.

18 May 2013

Clinical study reveals that Kava could be an alternative treatment for GAD

A world-first completed clinical study by an Australian team has found Kava, a medicinal South Pacific plant, significantly reduced the symptoms of people suffering anxiety.

14 May 2013

Methylphenidate normalizes activation of several brain areas in children with ADHD

The stimulant drug methylphenidate "normalizes" activation of several brain areas in young patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to a review published in the May Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

10 May 2013

Violence and Gender: New refereed journal delves into gender basis of violence

Delving into controversial and unsettling subjects such as the gender basis of violence, the new refereed journal Violence and Gender, launching in fall 2013, will explore the difficult issues that are vital to threat assessment and prevention of the epidemic of violence.

26 Apr 2013

New paper examines some suggested descriptions of mental pain

When we think of pain we generally think of something that is related to our body. But there is a devastating form of pain that is not frequently acknowledged and is a topic of a paper by Eliana Tossani (University of Bologna) in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

5 Apr 2013

Online chat rooms provide beneficial forum for chronic pain sufferers

The more than 100 million Americans living with chronic pain and daily suffering often have limited outlets to talk about their conditions with others who can understand and offer comfort. Online chatrooms may provide a beneficial forum where chronic pain sufferers can openly and safely communicate, as discussed in an article in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

19 Mar 2013