Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Depression and dementia may go hand in hand: Study

A new study has found that depressive disorders raise the risk of dementia. The findings of this study were published in the journal Neurology. The study involved nearly 1,000 people who were studied for up to 17 years. Those who were depressed when first examined almost doubled their risk for dementia and also increased their risk for Alzheimer's disease the study authors wrote.

5 Jul 2010

The heart and the psyche – Link between heart disease and anxiety-depressive disorders

According to a new report published in the acclaimed journal Archives of General Psychiatry, concomitant anxiety and other psychiatric illnesses in heart patients raise their risk of getting heart attacks, strokes, heart failure and early death.

5 Jul 2010

African study finds link between difficult childhood and teenage drinking

An African study has found a link between a difficult childhood and alcohol consumption as a teenager. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health studied the association between adverse childhood experiences and drunkenness among 9,189 adolescents aged 12-19 years living in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Malawi, and Uganda.

5 Jul 2010

Study finds structural similarities in neocortices of humans and chickens

For more than a century, neuroscientists believed that the brains of humans and other mammals differed from the brains of other animals, such as birds (and so were presumably better). This belief was based, in part, upon the readily evident physical structure of the neocortex, the region of the brain responsible for complex cognitive behaviors.

3 Jul 2010

Psychiatrist shortage may soon reach crisis levels

Demand for psychiatrists is growing faster than for any other medical specialty, according to a new survey by national physician search firm Merritt Hawkins, an AMN Healthcare Company.

3 Jul 2010

Karolinska Institutet researchers contribute at ESOF 2010

Researchers and staff from Karolinska Institutet are contributing to Europe's largest cross-disciplinary gathering place with news of everything from neuroscience to bioentrepreneurship. Carl Johan Sundberg, university lecturer and associate professor at Karolinska Institutet, is the founder and initiator of ESOF.

3 Jul 2010

Women have longer life expectancy, but with prevalence of disability in old age

Although women have a longer life expectancy, they experience a much greater prevalence of disability in old age than men do. This is the main conclusion of the study published in the latest issue of the Journal of Women's Health.

3 Jul 2010

Dogs help soldiers recover from PTSD

The Army is using dogs "much more" to help soldiers recovering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) according to the Army Surgeon General's special assistant for mental health, Col. Elspeth Cameron Ritchie, M.D., who spoke today at the annual convention of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).

3 Jul 2010

Gov. Patrick signs new law to stiffen penalties for assault on nurses and other health care workers

Surrounded by registered nurses and legislators, Governor Deval Patrick today signed a law that will stiffen the penalties for those who assault nurses and other health care workers, one of a series of measures the state's nurses are proposing to address the growing problem of workplace violence in health care settings. The vote follows unanimous votes to approve the measure in both houses of the legislature.

3 Jul 2010

State Roundup: Florida to investigate WellCare; Calif. budget cuts; Computer system helps states find Medicaid savings

Nextgov: "A 17-year-old computer data matching system designed to prevent welfare recipients from drawing benefits in more than one state at a time is now helping cash-strapped states save millions of dollars -- but not as originally intended.

3 Jul 2010

Lawmakers urge health insurers to enforce new Mental Parity Act

The Hill: "Health plans that say mental illnesses can't be treated like physical ailments are relying on an 'outdated argument' without merit that does not reflect 'three decades of scientific research,' 52 House members wrote in a recent letter to regulators. The comments come as a landmark law requiring parity in how health plans cover physical and mental illness went into effect Thursday.

3 Jul 2010

Chelsea reports positive outcome from DMC review of droxidopa Phase II trial in fibromyalgia

Chelsea Therapeutics International, Ltd. announced the completion and favorable outcome of an independent Data Monitoring Committee (DMC) review of the safety and efficacy data from approximately half the target enrollment in Chelsea's Phase II trial of droxidopa in fibromyalgia.

2 Jul 2010

Parkinson's Disease Foundation awards $1.2M for research programs

The Parkinson's Disease Foundation (PDF) is pleased to announce awards totaling $1.2 million for research projects designed to understand the cause(s) of and find a cure for Parkinson's disease (PD).

2 Jul 2010

Federal officials ask judge to order upgrade of Georgia's mental health system; VA. officials in court today on suit against health law

Atlanta Journal Constitution: "Talks to settle a federal investigation of Georgia's mental health system came down to a single meeting Wednesday." And, "the talks failed. Federal authorities immediately went to court, asking a judge to force Georgia to make substantial and potentially expensive improvements in its state psychiatric hospitals and in its community-based treatment services — the same measures state officials rejected during the negotiations.

2 Jul 2010

Elements Behavioral Health acquires The Ranch in Tennessee

Elements Behavioral Health, provider of residential treatment services for addiction and co-occurring disorders, announced this week the acquisition of The Ranch in Nunnelly, Tennessee. Elements is best known to the public as the owner of the internationally famous Promises Treatment Centers in Malibu and Los Angeles, where many Hollywood celebrities have been treated successfully for substance abuse.

2 Jul 2010

Imbalance in neuroendocrine system linked to depression in MS patients: Study

Now, in the first such study in living humans, researchers at UCLA suggest a cause, and it's not psychological, but physical: atrophy of a specific region of the hippocampus, a critical part of the brain involved in mood and memory, among other functions.

2 Jul 2010

Does too much texting puts teenagers at risk?

A seemingly harmless method of communication - text messaging on mobile phones could damage teenagers physically and psychologically a new study has revealed.

1 Jul 2010

Hospira subsidiary completes tender offer for Javelin's outstanding shares of common stock

Hospira, Inc., a global specialty pharmaceutical and medication delivery company, today announced the successful completion of the tender offer by Discus Acquisition Corporation, a wholly owned Hospira subsidiary, to purchase all outstanding shares of the common stock of Javelin Pharmaceuticals, Inc..

1 Jul 2010

Aptuit to acquire GSK's research business in Verona

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Aptuit, Inc. announced today that they have finalized an agreement for Aptuit to acquire operations at GSK's Medicines Research Centre in Verona, Italy. The arrangement, which is effective as of July 1, 2010, provides for ongoing employment of the staff at the centre and for Aptuit to supply GSK with R&D services from the facilities. Financial terms have not been disclosed.

1 Jul 2010

First analyses on impact of Medicare Part D presented at UMB's 2010 Academy/Health Annual Meeting

Some of the first analyses on the impact of Medicare Part D, as well as new insights on drug adherence patterns by chronic disease patients, will be presented today and tomorrow at the 2010 Academy/Health Annual Meeting by several University of Maryland, Baltimore teams of pharmaceutical health services researchers.

1 Jul 2010