Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Hospitals may give free care to some Colo. theater shooting victims

Several hospitals are giving some free care to or forgiving the bills of the victims of the Colorado theater shooting.

27 Jul 2012

Orthognathic surgery requires a balancing act in anesthetic technique

Orthognathic surgery, affecting the jaws and face, requires a balancing act in anesthetic technique. Limiting blood loss, avoiding respiratory depression, and averting postoperative nausea and vomiting lead to optimum patient outcomes. The use of the drugs propofol and remifentanil are increasing because they can meet these needs; however, patients may subsequently experience more postoperative pain.

27 Jul 2012

Roundup: Ore. Gov. suggests malpractice reform; Mass. Gov. proposes new scrutiny for health care providers; Texas has offered HPV vaccine since 2007

The state can cut health care costs and reduce the number of medical-related lawsuits by requiring earlier notification of injuries as well as pretrial mediation, according to a recommendation Gov. John Kitzhaber issued Wednesday. The product of closed-door talks between representatives of interest groups including the Oregon Medical Association and the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, Kitzhaber's recommendation now goes to a work group including lawmakers, a trial lawyer and doctor that begins public meetings next week.

27 Jul 2012

Injury risk increased in patients with serious mental illnesses

People with serious mental illnesses are significantly more likely to experience injuries than the general population, US study results show.

26 Jul 2012

Fatty acids normalize without help in girls with eating disorders

Omega-3 essential fatty acid supplementation is unnecessary for adolescent girls with eating disorders and weight-loss eating disorder, as levels normalize once they return to normal weight, say researchers.

26 Jul 2012

Illiteracy linked to schizophrenia risk

The risk for schizophrenia is significantly higher among illiterate than literate individuals in China, particularly among younger age groups, results from a population-based study show.

26 Jul 2012

PTSD prevalent in serious mental illness patients

Post-traumatic stress disorder is common among patients with serious mental illnesses, and is associated with an increased risk for suicide attempts, Spanish researchers report.

26 Jul 2012

Researchers develop piglet model to study infant brain development

Events that take place early in life almost certainly have consequences for later cognitive development. Establishing the connections is difficult, however, because human infants cannot be used as laboratory subjects. Rodney Johnson and his collaborators have developed an alternative model for studying infant brain development. "Assistant professor Ryan Dilger and I became interested in establishing the neonatal piglet as a model of human brain and cognitive development 3 or 4 years ago," he said.

26 Jul 2012

Myotonia less important to patients with myotonic dystrophy than other symptoms

Complex, multi-system diseases like myotonic dystrophy - the most common adult form of muscular dystrophy - require physicians and patients to identify which symptoms impact quality of life and, consequently, what treatments should take priority. However, a new study out this month in the journal Neurology reveals that there is often a disconnect between the two groups over which symptoms are more important, a phenomenon that not only impacts care but also the direction of research into new therapies.

26 Jul 2012

Insomnia: an interview with Dr Darryle Schoepp

Insomnia is a very common disorder. In medical terms it can affect a third of people. It affects elderly as well as non-elderly people, and is more common in women.

26 Jul 2012

Adolescent girls three times more likely to have experienced major depressive episodes

A new report shows that the percentage of girls who experience a major depressive episode in the past year triples between the ages of 12 and 15 (from 5.1 percent to 15.2 percent respectively). The report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) also shows that an annual average of 1.4 million adolescent girls age 12 to 17 experienced a major depressive episode in the past year.

26 Jul 2012

Consumption of alcohol mixed with energy drinks can lead to casual sex among college-age adults

A new study from the University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA) has found a link between the consumption of caffeinated energy drinks mixed with alcohol and casual -- often risky -- sex among college-age adults.

26 Jul 2012

Diabetic women more likely to report low overall sexual satisfaction

Women with diabetes are just as likely to be interested in, and engage in, sexual activity as non-diabetic women, but they are much more likely to report low overall sexual satisfaction, according to a UCSF study.

26 Jul 2012

Reduced white matter integrity in schizophrenia patients

Patients with schizophrenia show widespread reductions in white matter integrity, particularly in fronto-temporal regions, researchers report.

25 Jul 2012

Constant pain after breast cancer surgery ‘more taxing’

Women who experience chronic pain after treatment for breast cancer are not significantly more anxious or depressed than women without pain, find researchers.

25 Jul 2012

VA disability claims continue to pour in

Despite efforts by the Obama administration to direct additional resources to help meet the disability benefits and treatment needs of veterans, the problems continue to grow.

25 Jul 2012

Study uncovers pathways by which yoga impacts biological processes

Six months ago, researchers at UCLA published a study that showed using a specific type of yoga to engage in a brief, simple daily meditation reduced the stress levels of people who care for those stricken by Alzheimer's and dementia. Now they know why.

25 Jul 2012

States wonder just how big an impact health law dollars will have

An analysis in Minnesota expects the state to receive only about $42 million in increased state revenue between fiscal years 2010 and 2015 from the health law. Meanwhile, budget cuts -- even with the increase in coverage from the health law -- have some Pennsylvanians worried that the mental health coverage gap could persist.

25 Jul 2012

Deep look into how brain mechanisms for memory retrieval differ between adults and children

Neuroscientists from Wayne State University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are taking a deeper look into how the brain mechanisms for memory retrieval differ between adults and children.

25 Jul 2012

Dapivirine Phase III trial now underway in Africa to treat HIV in women

A large clinical trial testing the long-term safety and effectiveness of a new approach for preventing HIV in women - a vaginal ring used once a month - is now underway in Africa, researchers announced today at the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012).

25 Jul 2012