Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Neuralstem files NSI-189 IND with FDA for Phase I safety trials for major depression

Neuralstem, Inc. announced that it has filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin two Phase I safety trials to test NSI-189, its first small molecule compound, for the treatment of major depression. NSI-189 is a proprietary new chemical entity discovered by Neuralstem that stimulates new neuron growth in the hippocampus, an area of the brain that is believed to be involved in depression.

18 Nov 2010

Study finds gender differences linked to gaming and health risks associated with problematic gaming

A new study on gaming and health in adolescents, conducted by researchers at Yale School of Medicine, found some significant gender differences linked to gaming as well as important health risks associated with problematic gaming. Published today in the journal Pediatrics, the study is among the first and largest to examine possible health links to gaming and problematic gaming in a community sample of adolescents.

17 Nov 2010

Video game-based technologies allow new insight into memory, perception and motor control

New tools inspired by video games are revealing how the brain senses and responds to its surroundings, finds new human and animal research. Taking advantage of state-of-the art technologies to track and mimic real-life environments, these studies show with new detail how the brain navigates, identifies, and remembers a setting. In additional human research, scientists apply these same technological advances to help people who have experienced strokes regain skills.

17 Nov 2010

Depression linked to risky sexual behaviours among young South Africans

University of Alberta research has discovered a strong link between depression and risky sexual behaviours such as improper condom use, transactional sex and relationship violence among young people in South Africa.

17 Nov 2010

New educational campaign provides information to Alzheimer's caregivers

More than five million people in the United States (U.S.) have Alzheimer's disease (AD), a progressive and devastating condition that also impacts millions of more people who love and care for these patients. Last year in the U.S., the 11 million unpaid caregivers for patients with Alzheimer's or another dementia provided 12.5 billion hours of care.

17 Nov 2010

New animal research identifies factors that may play key roles in depression

New animal research has identified factors, such as the stress response and immune system, that may play important roles in depression. Scientists have also found that the regulation of nerve cell signals influences depression in animals, and that new drug combinations may more effectively treat it. The findings were presented at Neuroscience 2010, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news on brain science and health.

17 Nov 2010

PrecisionMed enrolls first subject in Multiple Sclerosis Registry

PrecisionMed Inc. today announced at the Society for Neuroscience annual meeting in San Diego, enrollment of the first subject into the PrecisionMed Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Registry. The PrecisionMed MS Registry is a biological sample bank of DNA and serial RNA, CSF, serum and plasma associated with serial clinical testing utilizing PrecisionMed's clinical data procurement and storage capabilities.

17 Nov 2010

Researchers explore interplay between pain and anxiety

Disability from chronic pain in adolescents can be exacerbated by high levels of anxiety, according to research reported The Journal of Pain, the peer review publication of the American Pain Society.

17 Nov 2010

Risk reduction of 20 ailments with regular exercise: Review

In a review article researchers have concluded that regular exercise cuts the risk of more than 20 illnesses. Some of these include colon cancer, heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis and stroke said the study published in the International Journal of Clinical Practice.

16 Nov 2010

BUSM professor wins 2010 Maurice Wood Award for Lifetime Contribution to Primary Care Research

Larry Culpepper, MD, MPH, chair and professor of family medicine at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and chief of family medicine at Boston Medical Center (BMC), is the recipient of the 2010 Maurice Wood Award for Lifetime Contribution to Primary Care Research.

16 Nov 2010

Researchers identify pattern of brain activity that may develop ASD

An autism study by Yale School of Medicine researchers using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has identified a pattern of brain activity that may characterize the genetic vulnerability to developing autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Published today in the early edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the study could eventually lead to earlier and more accurate autism diagnosis.

16 Nov 2010

Researchers discover circadian rhythms regulate fat metabolism

UC Irvine researchers have discovered that circadian rhythms the internal body clock regulate fat metabolism. This helps explain why people burn fat more efficiently at certain times of day and could lead to new pharmaceuticals for obesity, diabetes and energy-related illnesses.

16 Nov 2010

Health researchers to address mental health concerns at world conference

More than 500 mental health researchers, practitioners, and advocates representing over 40 countries will gather for the Sixth World Conference on the Promotion of Mental Health and Prevention of Mental and Behavioral Disorders, November 17–19, 2010, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. With the theme Addressing Imbalances: Promoting Equity in Mental Health, the conference will focus on inequalities in care, research, and practice in ways that protect the most vulnerable.

16 Nov 2010

Universal Health Services acquires Psychiatric Solutions

Universal Health Services, Inc. announced today that it has completed its previously announced acquisition of Psychiatric Solutions, Inc.

16 Nov 2010

Teenage binge drinking could cause mental health problems in adulthood: Study

Binge-drinking teenagers may be putting themselves at higher risk in adulthood for mood disorders such as anxiety and depression, Loyola University Health System researchers report.

16 Nov 2010

Researchers find additional work of oxytocin hormone

New human research suggests the chemical oxytocin dubbed the "cuddle hormone" because of its importance in bonding between romantic partners and mothers and children also influences feelings of well-being and sensitivity to advertising.

15 Nov 2010

Young marijuana users suffer most cognitive damage: Study

Many marijuana smokers begin early. A new study shows that these people did much worse on tests of executive brain function than those who started smoking when they were older. Researchers highlight the danger posed by marijuana and the need to develop effective strategies to reduce marijuana use, especially among young people in their study.

15 Nov 2010

No difference in risk of nonsuicide death between ziprasidone and olanzapine for schizophrenia

The potential for harmful side effects associated with anti-psychotic medications for treating schizophrenia is a frustration for mental-health professionals who must balance this with the positive benefits of drugs. For example, the issue of the antipsychotic drug ziprasidone lengthening the QTc interval, a possible indicator of life-threatening heart arrhythmias, has demanded much attention among clinicians since the drug was introduced in 2001.

15 Nov 2010

WaterBrook Press releases third edition of Hope, Help and Healing for Eating Disorders

WaterBrook Press recently released the third edition of Hope, Help and Healing for Eating Disorders, A Whole-Person Approach to Treatment of Anorexia, Bulimia and Disorder Eating. The newest edition of this 1995 bestseller on overcoming anorexia, bulimia and other eating disorders from Dr. Gregory L. Jantz, PhD, with Ann McMurray, features the most up-to-date information on body image, food addiction, nutrition and more.

15 Nov 2010

Diffusion Tensor Imaging MRI technique helps produce satisfactory images of nerve bundles

Standard MRI scans have so far been unable to produce satisfactory images of nerve bundles. However, this is now possible by an MRI technique called Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI). Matthan Caan succeeded in improving the DTI method during his PhD research at TU Delft, enabling him to produce more accurate images of the damage that radiotherapy and chemotherapy cause in young leukaemia patients.

15 Nov 2010