Psychotherapy News and Research

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Psychotherapy is “talk” therapy. It involves talking with a mental health professional to treat a mental illness. Psychotherapy can occur one-on-one or in a group. Research shows that support from family and friends can be an important part of therapy.

Psychologists can help people deal with anxiety and depression symptoms more effectively

From Thanksgiving to New Year's, there are many wishes for everyone to have a blissful and celebratory holiday season. But for many people, the holidays bring more misery than mirth, particularly at a time when the ailing economy can't seem to recover quickly enough and money worries remain on people's minds.

10 Dec 2009

Psychological trauma leaves a trail of damage in a child's brain, reveal scientists

Psychological trauma leaves a trail of damage in a child's brain, say scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital. Their new study gives the first direct evidence that children with symptoms of post-traumatic stress suffer poor function of the hippocampus, a brain structure that stores and retrieves memories. The research helps explain why traumatized children behave as they do and could improve treatments for these kids.

9 Dec 2009

Repeated use of ecstasy drug increases the risk of developing sleep apnea

Repeated use of the drug popularly known as "ecstasy" significantly raises the risk of developing sleep apnea in otherwise healthy young adults with no other known risk factors for the sleep disturbance, a new study by Johns Hopkins scientists suggests.

2 Dec 2009

Perceptual Control Theory may soon revolutionize psychological and social sciences

Just as 400 years ago a correct explanation of the solar system set the stage for major progress in the physical sciences, so today a correct explanation of control is setting the stage for major progress in the life sciences.

17 Nov 2009

Deep brain stimulation can help patients with severe forms of depression

In deep brain stimulation, doctors specifically target the impaired function of certain areas of the brain with an electric brain pacemaker. For the purpose of this study, they implanted electrodes in what is known as the nucleus accumbens. That is an important part of the 'reward system' which ensures that we remember good experiences and puts us in a state of pleasant anticipation.

2 Nov 2009

Two-year trial to test effectiveness of behavioral psychotherapy for young adolescents with autism

The USF Health Rothman Center for Neuropsychiatry in St. Petersburg, FL, is conducting a two-year federal trial testing the effectiveness of behavioral psychotherapy in treating anxiety among young adolescents with autism.

28 Oct 2009

IFPA urges WHO to act on new insights on psoriasis to help millions of psoriasis patients

October 29 is World Psoriasis Day. Conceived by patients for patients, World Psoriasis Day is a truly global event focusing on the burden of living with psoriasis. There are more than 125 million people with psoriasis/psoriatic arthritis in the world. Psoriasis is a severe chronic inflammatory disease that effects all ages, genders, races and ethnicities.

28 Oct 2009

New systematic study for managing treatment-resistant bipolar depression

Depression in bipolar illness is often difficult to treat and life-threating. Frequently it fails to respond to standard treatments. In the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics a new drug combination is suggested.

27 Oct 2009

New therapy for decreasing anxiety and improving psychological well-being in children

A group of investigators of the University of Bologna suggest a new way of approaching emotional disturbances in children by improving their psychological well-being. The study is published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

27 Oct 2009

Study explores the link between child sexual abuse and inability to express emotions in adulthood

An investigation published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics explores the link between child sexual abuse and inability to express emotions in adulthood.

27 Oct 2009

Victims of mobbing show behavioral and social inhibition; less skilled to face environmental challenges

A study by Naples investigators published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics reports on what happens in the axis which controls the secretion of cortisol in victims of mobbing.

27 Oct 2009

Study compares differences between inpatient and day treatment of bulimia nervosa

A German study published in the fifth issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics compares the differences between inpatient and day treatment of bulimia nervosa.

23 Oct 2009

School-based intervention programs alleviate posttraumatic symptomatology in children and adolescents

What to do to help children psychologically after a natural disaster (earthquake, flooding, etc.) is a controversial issue. The current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics reports on an important study which adopted a controlled design to evaluate the effectiveness of a school-based intervention.

21 Oct 2009

DCPR classification provides diagnostic criteria to evaluate psychosomatic syndromes

An investigation headed by Piero Porcelli (Bari, Italy) has yielded new insights as to what affects how a patient perceives his/her illness. It is published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

20 Oct 2009

Report on new psychoneuroendocrinology service in outpatient treatment

The value of interdisciplinary expertise has not been implemented in clinical practice. Based on a longstanding teamwork between endocrinologist and psychiatrist, the Authors designed a new outpatient clinic, called Psychoneuroendocrinology (PNE) Service, that applies current principles of psychosomatic medicine, such as the assessment of interacting biological and psychosocial factors in the course of disease.

20 Oct 2009

Study explores the efficacy of antidepressant drugs for patients with severe depression and medical disorder

This study demonstrates that over 6 weeks of treatment, patients with melancholic depression and medical comorbidity (MC) (specifically cardiovascular or endocrinological MC) had poorer treatment response and a worse functional outcome as opposed to their counterparts without MC. Interestingly, these effects were not related to various antidepressant treatment regimens.

20 Oct 2009

Current medical assessment not sufficient; clinimetric methods may improve final outcomes

In a paper published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Giovanni A. Fava (University of Bologna) and Nicoletta Sonino (University of Padova) summarize data which indicate that current medical assessment, by ignoring the psychosocial dimensions, is inadequate in most of medical encounters

19 Oct 2009

Scientists explore what is behind the feeling of not being competent

In a paper published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, a group of investigators headed by John De Figueiredo explores what is behind the feeling of not being competent.

19 Oct 2009

Depression becomes more difficult to treat the longer it goes undiagnosed or undertreated

A new survey of 2,001 adults living with depression revealed that despite being diagnosed for an average of 12 years, many unknowingly took actions that could have sabotaged their chances of getting well. Furthermore, on average, it took about six years for respondents to seek diagnosis from a health care professional, suggesting these adults may have been coping with depression for as long as 18 years.

15 Oct 2009

New neurosurgical procedure may prove helpful for patients with treatment-resistant depression

A new neurosurgical procedure may prove helpful for patients with treatment-resistant depression. Bilateral epidural prefrontal cortical stimulation (EpCS) was found generally safe and provided significant improvement of depressive symptoms in a small group of patients, according to lead researcher Ziad Nahas, M.D. at the Medical University of South Carolina. The data are reported in the on-line issue of Biological Psychiatry.

14 Oct 2009

Psychotherapy News and Research

Further Reading

Psychologists can help people deal with anxiety and depression symptoms more effectively

Psychological trauma leaves a trail of damage in a child's brain, reveal scientists

Repeated use of ecstasy drug increases the risk of developing sleep apnea

Perceptual Control Theory may soon revolutionize psychological and social sciences

Deep brain stimulation can help patients with severe forms of depression

Two-year trial to test effectiveness of behavioral psychotherapy for young adolescents with autism

IFPA urges WHO to act on new insights on psoriasis to help millions of psoriasis patients

New systematic study for managing treatment-resistant bipolar depression

New therapy for decreasing anxiety and improving psychological well-being in children

Study explores the link between child sexual abuse and inability to express emotions in adulthood

Victims of mobbing show behavioral and social inhibition; less skilled to face environmental challenges

Study compares differences between inpatient and day treatment of bulimia nervosa

School-based intervention programs alleviate posttraumatic symptomatology in children and adolescents

DCPR classification provides diagnostic criteria to evaluate psychosomatic syndromes

Report on new psychoneuroendocrinology service in outpatient treatment

Study explores the efficacy of antidepressant drugs for patients with severe depression and medical disorder

Current medical assessment not sufficient; clinimetric methods may improve final outcomes

Scientists explore what is behind the feeling of not being competent

Depression becomes more difficult to treat the longer it goes undiagnosed or undertreated

New neurosurgical procedure may prove helpful for patients with treatment-resistant depression

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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