Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

PUFA levels reduced in schizophrenia patients

Patients with schizophrenia exhibit reduced red blood cell levels of certain polyunsaturated fatty acids , results from a systematic review and meta-analysis show.

18 Oct 2012

Plasma D-serine levels reduced in schizophrenia

Patients with schizophrenia exhibit significantly lower plasma levels of the amino acid D-serine than mentally healthy individuals, Brazilian researchers report.

18 Oct 2012

Activity levels may distinguish unipolar from bipolar disorder

The measurement of activity levels may help distinguish patients with unipolar depression from those with bipolar disorder when they are in a remitted or mild/moderate depressive state, say researchers.

18 Oct 2012

Calif.'s top health care official says state could dump health plan for kids and maintain quality care

California's top health official said Tuesday that she thinks the state can end a health care program for low-income children without disrupting their care.

18 Oct 2012

Factors associated with medication non-adherence identified for PD

Depression and complex drug regimens are among the factors associated with non-adherence to medication in patients with Parkinson’s disease, show the findings of a systematic review.

17 Oct 2012

Nonmotor symptoms common in early-stage PD

Nonmotor symptoms occur in nearly all individuals with Parkinson’s disease, Italian study results suggest.

17 Oct 2012

Maternal depression influences infant speech development

The early development of speech perception in infants is affected by both maternal depression and prenatal exposure to serotonin reuptake inhibitors, such that major milestones are either accelerated or delayed, say US and Canadian scientists.

17 Oct 2012

Cytokine levels altered in FEP, schizophrenia patients

Levels of certain cytokines are altered in patients with first-episode psychosis and patients with schizophrenia, research shows.

17 Oct 2012

Quitting smoking may improve HRQoL in advanced lung cancer

The health-related quality of life of patients with advanced-stage lung cancer is worsened if they smoke, report UK researchers.

17 Oct 2012

Trauma in infancy and childhood shapes the brain, learning and behavior

Trauma in infancy and childhood shapes the brain, learning, and behavior, and fuels changes that can last a lifetime, according to new human and animal research released today. The studies delve into the effects of early physical abuse, socioeconomic status (SES), and maternal treatment.

17 Oct 2012

People in creative professions are treated more often for mental illness

People in creative professions are treated more often for mental illness than the general population, there being a particularly salient connection between writing and schizophrenia. This according to researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, whose large-scale registry study is the most comprehensive ever in its field.

17 Oct 2012

New findings on sleep deprivation presented at Neuroscience 2012

New findings presented today report the important role sleep plays, and the brain mechanisms at work as sleep shapes memory, learning, and behavior. The findings were presented at Neuroscience 2012, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news about brain science and health.

17 Oct 2012

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation announces winners of 2012 Community Health Leaders Award

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is proud to announce today the recipients of its 2012 Community Health Leaders Award, honoring 10 individuals who have surmounted significant challenges to help improve health and health care in their communities.

17 Oct 2012

Lower extremity pain linked to poor physical and mental health in obese children

Pain in the lower extremities - feet, ankles, knees and hips - contributes to both poor physical function and a reduced quality of life in obese children, according to a new study by Dr. Sharon Bout-Tabaku and colleagues, from Nationwide Children's Hospital and The Ohio State University in the US.

17 Oct 2012

PUFA levels reduced in schizophrenia patients

Patients with schizophrenia exhibit reduced red blood cell levels of certain polyunsaturated fatty acids, results from a systematic review and meta-analysis show.

16 Oct 2012

IMS develops review on weight gain at the menopause

To mark World Menopause Day (18th October) the International Menopause Society has developed a state-of-the-science review on weight gain at the menopause. This report is published in the peer-reviewed journal, Climacteric.

16 Oct 2012

LRRK2 inhibitors may provide neuroprotection for patients with Parkinson's

For decades, patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) have had the same experience. Their hands start to shake uncontrollably, their limbs become rigid and they lose their balance. Years before those movement problems set in, many begin struggling with fainting, incontinence, sexual dysfunction, anxiety and depression. Many patients are still treated with a 42-year-old drug called L-DOPA, which temporarily staves off symptoms but can itself cause heart arrhythmias, stomach bleeding and hallucinations.

16 Oct 2012

Transcranial magnetic stimulation can benefit patients with depression, debilitating tinnitus

Three patients who have suffered periodic major depression throughout their adult lives told an audience attending a Loyola Grand Rounds presentation how their lives have been transformed by a new magnetic therapy.

16 Oct 2012

U-M professor receives 2012 ASA Excellence in Research Award

The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) today presented Ralph Lydic, Ph.D. with its 2012 ASA Excellence in Research Award. Dr. Lydic, well known for his research on the neurobiology of sleep and breathing, received the award at the ANESTHESIOLOGY 2012 annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

16 Oct 2012

Researchers discover why people exposed to war more likely to develop chronic diseases

Wayne State University School of Medicine researchers may have discovered why people exposed to war are at increased risk to develop chronic problems like heart disease years later. And the culprit that links the two is surprising.

16 Oct 2012