mental health Tag

13 May

Posted at 21:58h in Author Interviews, Mental Health Research, Schizophrenia
prof_jayashri_kulharniMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Jayashri Kulkarni MBBS, MPM, FRANZCP, PhD Monash University MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Professor Kulkarni: Persistent schizophrenia is difficult and unfortunately common, despite advances over the past years in antipsychotic drug development. New treatment approaches are urgently needed. Also, a specific focus for women with schizophrenia is still somewhat lacking and there is a need to consider the special issues facing women with schizophrenia. Over many years, we have been conducting clinical trials to develop the role of adjunctive estradiol use to treat symptoms of schizophrenia. This study is the largest clinical trial in the world of this type and we found that in an 8 week, three arm, double blind, placebo-controlled, adjunctive trial of transdermal estradiol (200mcg v 100mcg v placebo) in 183 women with schizophrenia, that the women who received either 200mcg or 100mcg transdermal estradiol made a better recovery. The women who received 200mcg transdermal estradiol made a slightly better recovery than women receiving 100mcg transdermal estradiol. Both estradiol groups were significantly better than the group who received adjunctive transdermal placebo.

13 May

Posted at 01:11h in Author Interviews, Lancet, Mental Health Research
Dr Alexandra Pitman MBBS MRC Psych MRC Clinical Research Fellow, UCL Division of Psychiatry, UCL (University College LondonMedicalResearch.com interview with: Dr Alexandra Pitman MBBS MRC Psych MRC Clinical Research Fellow, UCL Division of Psychiatry, UCL (University College London MedicalResearch: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: We conducted a systematic review of all published research comparing the experience of suicide bereavement with bereavement due to other causes, in which we considered the evidence from 57 studies evaluating the effect of bereavement on death, mental health, and social functioning of family members, friends, and other close contacts of the deceased. These studies showed that parents and children bereaved by suicide were at higher risk of mental health problems after the loss than parents and children bereaved by other causes, and that spouses and mothers bereaved by suicide were at higher risk of suicide than spouses and mothers bereaved by other causes. We also found some evidence that people from a range of kinship groups bereaved by suicide report more rejection and shame than people bereaved by other violent deaths, and that feeling stigmatised by the death is commonly experienced after any violent bereavement. It seemed that people bereaved by violent deaths, for example due to accidental death, homicide, drug-related death, motor vehicle crash, undetermined death or suicide, shared a sense of feeling blamed for the death or tainted by their association with the deceased.

08 May

Posted at 10:39h in Cannabis, Mental Health Research
Meesha Ahuja, MD Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior of the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University Young Adult Behavioral Health Program at Rhode Island Hospital Mentors: Laura Whiteley, MD and Larry Brown, MDMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Meesha Ahuja, MD Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior of the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University Young Adult Behavioral Health Program at Rhode Island Hospital Mentors: Laura Whiteley, MD and Larry Brown, MD MedicalResearch: Why did you decided to study this topic? Dr. Ahuja: Severe mental illness is more common among college students than it was a decade ago, and the number of college students presenting for psychiatric care both on and off campus has dramatically increased. The rates of cannabis use have also been increasing among college students in the United States since the mid-1990s. The concomitant use of cannabis and other substances among general samples in psychiatric treatment has been linked to poorer clinical outcomes including increased hospitalizations, increased symptomatology, poorer treatment adherence, higher treatment resistance. However, before doing this study, there was no research that examined the effect of cannabis and other substance use disorders on the scholastic and general functioning of college students in psychiatric care.

26 Apr

Posted at 10:27h in Author Interviews, JAMA
MedicalResearch.com Interview Invitation Karin J. H. Verweij, PhD Department of Developmental Psychology and EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research,  VU University Amsterdam, the Netherlands MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Verweij: We performed a twin study using over 10,000 adult Australian twins to determine the relative importance of genetic and environmental influences on individual differences in non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicidal ideation and their covariation. We found that individuals that report self-harm are approximately eight times more likely to also report suicidal ideation. Results from the bivariate genetic model indicated that the substantial correlation between non-suicidal self-injury and suicidal ideation (r=0.49 for males and 0.61 for females) is largely explained by overlapping genetic factors: 62% and 76% for males and females, respectively. Overlapping residual influences, including nonshared environmental influences and measurement error, also explain part of the covariance between the two traits. These findings suggest that the two behaviors share similar biological underpinnings.

23 Apr

Posted at 10:41h in Author Interviews, Geriatrics, Mental Health Research
Helen C. Kales MD Professor of Psychiatry Director, Section of Geriatric Psychiatry and The Program for Positive Aging, University of Michigan Research Scientist, VA Center for Clinical Management Research and Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center VA Ann Arbor Healthcare SysteMedicalResearch.com Interview with Helen C. Kales MD Professor of Psychiatry Director, Section of Geriatric Psychiatry and The Program for Positive Aging, University of Michigan Research Scientist, VA Center for Clinical Management Research and Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System Please note that this paper is the result of the deliberations of a multi-disciplinary national expert panel, not a specific study. MedicalResearch.com: What were the main findings of the expert panel? Dr. Kales: Often more than memory loss, behavioral symptoms of dementia are among the most difficult aspects of caring for people with dementia. These symptoms are experienced almost universally, across dementia stages and causes, and are often associated with poor outcomes including early nursing home placement, hospital stays, caregiver stress and depression, and reduced caregiver employment.  Doctors often prescribe these patients psychiatric medications like antipsychotics, despite little hard evidence that they work well in this population and despite the risks they pose including hastening death.  Meanwhile, studies show promise for non-medication behavioral and environmental approaches (such as providing caregiver education/support, creating meaningful activities and simplifying/enhancing the environment), but too few health providers are trained in their use.  The method created by the national multidisciplinary group of experts (DICE which stands for Describe, Investigate, Create and Evaluate) represents a comprehensive approach to assessment and management of behavioral symptoms in dementia.  For example, a new report of “agitation” from a caregiver, should be fully understood and described (e.g. who/what/when/where/risk/safety); underlying causes should be investigated (e.g. pain, changes in medications, medical conditions, poor sleep, fear); a treatment plan should be created (e.g. responding to physical problems, working collaboratively with the caregiver and other team members to institute non-pharmacologic interventions); and evaluating whether the interventions tried were effective.

20 Apr

Posted at 00:18h in Author Interviews, Lancet, Mental Health Research
Dr. George Patton Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne Centre for Adolescent Health, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, VIC, AustraliaMedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. George Patton Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne Centre for Adolescent Health, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, VIC, Australia MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Dr. Patton: Although there has been wide acceptance that the teens are a time when emotional problems are common, views have been polarized about their significance. Some have viewed these problems are usual for this phase of life with little significance for later life mental health; others have argued that early psychiatric intervention was essential given the risks of ongoing disorders. In this sample almost two thirds of girls and a third of boys had an episode of emotional troubles (anxiety and depression) at a level that would concern a family physician. For those where the episode were brief lasting weeks to months, recovery without further later life episodes was common. In contrast those with persistent (longer than 6 months) or recurrent emotional problems during the teens had a high likelihood of similar problems with depression and anxiety in their twenties. In general these emotional problems persisted more in females than in males.

27 Feb

Posted at 01:14h in Author Interviews, JAMA, Mental Health Research
Brian D'Onofrio, PhD Associate Professor Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences Indiana University Bloomington, IN MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Brian D'Onofrio, PhD Associate Professor Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences Indiana University Bloomington, IN MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of your study? Dr. D'Onofrio: The main finding from our study is that the specific associations between advancing paternal age at childbearing and offspring psychiatric and academic problems were much larger than in previous studies. In fact, we found that advancing paternal age was associated with greater risk for several problems, such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, suicide attempts and substance use problems, whereas traditional research designs suggested advancing paternal age may have diminished the rate at which these problems occur.

14 Feb

Posted at 13:21h in Author Interviews, BMJ, Mental Health Research, Smoking
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Gemma Taylor MSc MBPsS Doctoral ResearcherGemma Taylor MSc MBPsS Doctoral Researcher and Paul Aveyard and PhD MRCP MRCGP FFPG Professor of Behavioral MedicinePaul Aveyard and PhD MRCP MRCGP FFPG Professor of Behavioral Medicine Fellow of Wolson College Primary Care Clinical Sciences The University of Birmingham Birmingham United Kingdom MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: Smoking cessation is associated with improvements in mental health compared with continuing to smoke. The effect sizes seem as large for those with psychiatric disorders as those without and are equal or larger to effect estimates of antidepressant treatment for mood and anxiety disorders.

30 Aug

Posted at 18:17h in Author Interviews, Duke, JAMA, Mental Health Research
MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Arif Khan, MD Medical Director, Northwest Clinical Research Center Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry Duke University Medical Center and Christine Khan, Psychiatric Nurse 1951 – 152nd  Place NE Northwest Clinical Research Center Bellevue, WA 98007 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of your study?
  1. The original idea set in early 20th century that psychiatric patients discharged from mental hospitals had a shortened life span or faced early death was supported by this analysis of psychiatric patients participating in research trials for new medications.  There was no increased risk of early death or shortened life span for participating in these research clinical trials. 
  2. Life span shortening or increased risk of early death is highest among patients with schizophrenia, followed by patients with major mood disorders such as Bipolar Mood Disorder and Major Depression.

07 Aug

Posted at 00:46h in Author Interviews, JAMA, Mental Health Research, UT Southwestern
Carol S. North, MD, MPE The Nancy and Ray L. Hunt Chair in Crisis Psychiatry Director, Program in Trauma and Disaster, VA North Texas Health Care System 4500 S. Lancaster Rd., Dallas, TX 75216 Professor of Psychiatry and Surgery/Division of Emergency Medicine UT Southwestern Medical Center 6363 Forest Park Rd. Dallas, TX 75390-8828MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Carol S. North, MD, MPE The Nancy and Ray L. Hunt Chair in Crisis Psychiatry Director, Program in Trauma and Disaster, VA North Texas Health Care System 4500 S. Lancaster Rd., Dallas, TX 75216 Professor of Psychiatry and Surgery/Division of Emergency Medicine UT Southwestern Medical Center 6363 Forest Park Rd. Dallas, TX 75390-8828 MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings of the study? Answer: In post-disaster settings, a systematic framework of case identification, triage, and mental health interventions can guide overall mental health response and should be integrated into emergency medicine and trauma care responses.