Psychopharmacology can be useful in all stages of couples' therapy. Using a high-functioning couple as a case example, the author illustrates how psychopharmacology, together with psychotherapy, can be used to facilitate treatment success.
The authors compare the clinical features of idiopathic psychosis (eg, schizophrenia) with cannabis-induced psychosis.
Over half of the population is exposed to at least one lifetime traumatic event, yet relatively few of those exposed have lasting psychiatric sequelae. As psychiatrists, we attend to the needs of those who suffer.
Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by excessive or unrealistic anxiety and worries about life circumstances. In the general population, the prevalence of GAD is 2% to 5%. It is the most frequent anxiety disorder seen in primary care, where 22% of patients complain of anxiety problems.1 DSM-IV lists 6 somatic symptoms associated with GAD: restlessness, increased fatigability, difficulty in concentrating, irritability, muscle tension, and sleep disturbance. These symptoms may present with hyperarousal, hypervigilance, and heightened muscle tension; autonomic symptoms are milder than in other anxiety disorders and can be absent.
What if biomarkers could tell you whether or not a depression treatment would work before a patient started?
Beyond psychosocial implications of anxiety disorders, an array of physiological effects may ensue.
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has received an extraordinary amount of attention in the popular media over the past eight months. Stories concerning the disorder, and especially its treatment with stimulant medication, have appeared in many major newspapers, news magazines and television news, entertainment and talk show programs.
The treatment of unipolar major depression presents a substantial challenge for the clinician. Major depression is a common disorder with a high propensity for relapse and recurrence.
Daniel Chaffin, M.D., says he has never been at the top of the physician pay charts. That's why the solo practitioner in San Rafael, Calif., decided long ago to pay close attention to his finances. He dutifully put money in a retirement plan each year, avoided speculations, and focused his attention on growth-oriented stocks and stock mutual funds. The result: A seven-digit retirement account, additional investments on the side and, in short, financial security for himself and his wife as he nears his 70th birthday.
Matters around child-bearing bring up emotions ranging from joy and elation to profound despair, anger, and resentment. Psychiatrists are trained to recognize such issues.
Dissociation-a common feature of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-involves disruptions in the usually integrated functions of consciousness, memory, identity, and perception of the self and the environment.
Nearly half of children who present to emergency departments with self-harm receive no mental health assessment. What are the essential elements needed to interview children and adolescents in the context of a psychiatric emergency?
With antipsychotics, my once-brilliant child can again speak, write, read, and maintain hygiene and has regained motor functioning.
The authors emphasize the importance of risk and protective factors and risk prediction models; analyze the growing evidence base for preventive interventions; and describe the concept of mental health promotion.
It is important to recognize and document the abilities and deficits of a patient in order to determine capacity.
Although a majority of states still permit capital punishment, this may not represent the true national mood: many of these states have not had an execution in more than 10 years.
While patients with restless legs syndrome may be successfully treated with a number of medications, comorbid psychiatric conditions present a unique challenge because many commonly prescribed psychiatric medications may worsen RLS symptoms.
The articles in this Special Report provide a broad, cross-cutting perspective on the current state of addiction psychiatry, insofar as it may pertain to your own clinical practice.
Through high-profile media cases and in film, the American public has had glimpses into the psychological phenomenon and criminal behavior known as stalking. But do these glimpses truly represent the types of stalking offenses that are commonly perpetrated? Academicians and public policy makers have only begun to focus attention on stalkingin the past 10 to 15 years. As is often the case, the dissemination of information relevant to treating clinicians often lags behind by many years. Thus, many mental health professionals have not been adequately trained to recognize stalking behavior and to treat those who perpetrate it.
The reported severity of the complaints in this patient appears grossly out of proportion given gathered information and clinical observations. What's your diagnosis?
Although the onset of psychotic symptoms before the age of 13 years is exceedingly rare, the incidence of schizophrenia rises sharply after the onset of puberty.1 Only 1% of the population has schizophrenia and 30% of these patients experience an onset of psychotic symptoms by age 18 years.2-8 The period that precedes the onset of frank psychotic symptoms (ie, the prodromal phase) has not been well characterized in early-onset schizophrenia-spectrum disorders (EOSS), but retrospective reports have shown that symptoms include high levels of depression and anxiety, emerging cognitive and social deficits, unusual thought content, and (not infrequently) school failure.
First-episode psychosis cases are presented here using the RAISE study model-individual sessions, family psycho-education, social advancement in school work, and an expert psychiatrist prescriber.
Is adult ADHD validated by research? These authors think not.
Biological Markers and the Future of Early Diagnosis and Treatment in Schizophrenia
Chronic health problems like diabetes only get worse with depression. New research shows the time is now to address both concerns.
Although the foundational and antifoundational traditions differ in their language and claims, both call into question the legitimacy of psychiatric diagnosis and treatment.
Obesity is one of the most common physical health problems in individuals with psychiatric conditions and contributes to excess medical morbidity and mortality. Several classes of psychotropic medications, particularly atypical antipsychotics, cause weight gain. While these issues pose challenges to optimal health, the good news is that there are solutions and emerging strategies.
I believe this book will serve as an invaluable resource for all students of psychodynamic theory as well as their teachers-and I would venture to say that this magisterial text is destined to become a classic.
For some patients with Parkinson disease, the neuropsychiatric complications are a greater source of morbidity than the motor dysfunction. This article focuses on the management of psychosis in Parkinson disease.
The major challenges for epigenetic therapies are target specificity of the drugs-an issue that is also true for most of the currently used drugs in medicine, especially in psychiatry.