Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Testing DBS for treating severe long-term depression

Bewernick and colleagues administered DBS treatment in ten patients with severe long-term depression who had not responded to multiple other antidepressant treatments, including psychotherapy, drug treatments and electroconvulsive treatment. After one year of DBS, all patients showed some improvement, and half of them experienced significant improvement in their symptoms of depression, astonishing considering they had not responded to any prior antidepressant treatment. In addition, the patients showed reduced ratings of anxiety and had only minor side effects. Importantly, none of their overall brain functioning was impaired by the DBS treatment.

27 Jan 2010

Ambidextrous children more likely to have ADHD symptoms

Children who are mixed-handed, or ambidextrous, are more likely to have mental health, language and scholastic problems in childhood than right- or left-handed children, according to a new study published today in the journal Pediatrics.

25 Jan 2010

Insertion of tiny heart pump without surgery

Cardiologists at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago are leading the Midwest in offering improved treatment options to patients, from the most advanced techniques in angioplasty, to lowering the amount of radiation exposure during heart scans, to opening an innovative clinic that treats heart disease and depression together.

23 Jan 2010

ACF and SAMHSA notify that TANF funds can be used to help families treat short term mental health

In the face of growing need for mental health and substance abuse treatment, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) are notifying states about how Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds can be used to help families in their communities in need of short term mental health or substance use treatment services.

23 Jan 2010

Heart disease patients at risk of substance abuse and mental health problems

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) would like to remind Americans that substance abuse and mental health problems affect those with heart disease. In fact, nearly a million Americans experiencing a serious psychological disorder in the past year also suffered from heart disease.

23 Jan 2010

UK Gill Heart Institute offers individualized fitness program for heart patients

How do you change health habits among a population with some of the highest heart disease rates in the world? Tackling heart disease in Kentucky - an epicenter of heart health problems - the University of Kentucky Gill Heart Institute Cardiac Rehabilitation Program is helping high-risk patients make radical, lasting changes to improve their heart health.

23 Jan 2010

NCMHD awards Weill Cornell Medical College $8M for establishing CEDREC in New York City

Weill Cornell Medical College has established a new research center to improve medical care in ethnically diverse and medically underserved communities in New York City.

23 Jan 2010

Ampyra receives FDA approval for improving walking in MS patients

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Ampyra (dalfampridine) extended release tablets to improve walking in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). In clinical trials, patients treated with Ampyra had faster walking speeds than those treated with an inactive pill (placebo). This is the first drug approved for this use.

23 Jan 2010

NIH awards grants to develop new tobacco-related drug therapies

Four scientists at Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center have been awarded more than $2.2 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to research the effects of nicotine and develop new tobacco-related drug therapies.

22 Jan 2010

NCD calls for policymakers to proactively address shortages in disability workforce infrastructure

The National Council on Disability (NCD) today released a report titled Workforce Infrastructure in Support of People with Disabilities: Matching Human Resources to Service Needs, calling for policymakers at all levels of government to proactively address current shortages and examine how labor market changes are driving both current and future supply.

22 Jan 2010

Catholic Charities USA convenes Centennial Summit in San Antonio

Catholic Charities USA, the 170-member national human services organization committed to cutting poverty in half by 2020–hosted by Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of San Antonio, Inc. and joined by Catholic Charities agencies from around the region–convened one of 10 Centennial Summits in San Antonio today as part of the organization's 100 year history.

22 Jan 2010

Combat injuries are not the leading cause of medical evacuation from war zones

The most common reasons for medical evacuation of military personnel from war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan in recent years have been fractures, tendonitis and other musculoskeletal and connective tissue disorders, not combat injuries, according to results of a Johns Hopkins study published January 22 in The Lancet.

22 Jan 2010

Physicians take measures to treat ADHD on college campuses across the country

In college, students with attention deficit/hyperactive disorder face an array of challenges—long days and nights of classes, studying and activities, all of which require increasing amounts of concentration.

22 Jan 2010

Researchers to study the impact of asthma on sleep and academic performance of young children

Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center and Hasbro Children's Hospital researchers have received more than $2.5 million in direct costs from The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) to study the impact of asthma on the sleep quality and academic performance of young children.

22 Jan 2010

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation supports the ISE Annual Conference with $25,000 grant

The Adler School of Professional Psychology has received a $25,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to support the Annual Conference of the Institute on Social Exclusion. This year's conference, titled "The Social Determinants of Mental Health: from Awareness to Action," will be the first ever in the United States to convene innovative thinkers from diverse disciplinary backgrounds to address this topic, and has already received international interest.

22 Jan 2010

Thomas S. Kilduff named a Fellow of the AAAS

SRI International, an independent nonprofit research and development institute, announced today that Thomas S. Kilduff, Ph.D., director of SRI International's Center for Neuroscience, has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

22 Jan 2010

Consistent pattern of cognitive deficits during childhood leads to adult schizophrenia

Years before adults develop schizophrenia, there is a pattern of cognitive difficulties they experience as children, including problems with verbal reasoning, working memory, attention and processing speed.

22 Jan 2010

Doctor offers tips for parents on how to speak with children about disasters

David Schonfeld, MD, Director, Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and Director, National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement, gives parents the following tips on how to speak with their children after disasters have occurred.

22 Jan 2010

States struggle with budget cuts, increased Medicaid pressure

News outlets look at developments in Medicaid issues. The Associated Press/ABC News reports on Louisiana: "Sen. Mary Landrieu defended the Senate's version of health care overhaul legislation — and language in it that provides up to $365 million in Medicaid money for Louisiana — as she discussed what her fellow Democrats should do after losing a crucial Senate seat to a Massachusetts Republican."

21 Jan 2010

MaMayo Clinic experts available to discuss health issues and concerns related to Olympic Games

Mayo Clinic's medical experts are sources of in-depth expertise and commentary about health issues and background related to the Olympic Games and Olympians. Below is a sampling of Mayo Clinic experts available to discuss numerous topics related to the Olympic Games, including concussions, performance enhancing drugs, sports psychology, joint injuries, etc. Mayo has satellite capability for broadcast requests.

21 Jan 2010