The use of psychiatric medications in children, including antidepressants (such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and drugs used to manage attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, are continuing to be reviewed by the FDA.

FDA Committees Examine Concerns About Psychiatric Drugs Used by Children

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) drugs for children won't require . restrictive black box labeling, as the FDA has reversed its earlier ruling.

FDA Panel: No Black Box Warning for ADHD Drugs

A psychiatrist in private practice gives guidelines when faced with the prospect of treating multiple members of the same family.

And Then There Were Five . . .

HR 4157, which would establish a federal patient information privacy standard that would pre-empt State patient privacy laws, is being rethought by one of its Congressional cosponsors.

Second Thoughts in Congress on Preempting State Patient Privacy Laws

Poetry from Dr Richard M. Berlin, professor of psychiatry at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

At the Chamber Music Concert

An overview of the articles in this Special Report on psychopharmacology.

The Complexities of Psychopharmacology

The search in identifying risk factors affecting cognitive health and longevity, including Alzheimer disease and  other dementias, has broadened to include genes and lifestyle factors.

Genes, Lifestyle, Attitude Influence Longevity, Cognitive Health

Differences between siblings are affected by internal representations and non-shared environmental influences such as gender, birth rank order, different peer influences, illnesses, and accidents.

From Sibling Differences to Internal Representations

Somatoform disorders (disorders that are not fully explained by a medical condition or mental disorder) may require psychiatrists to consult with physicians.

Somatization in the Primary Care Setting

Pediatric psychosomatic research shows that emotional, behavioral, and psychiatric symptoms are found more often in children and adolescents with chronic illnesses than in healthy children.

Essential Issues in Pediatric Psychosomatic Medicine

Delirium must be diagnosed accurately, prevented, and treated because of its pervasiveness and the associated risks of morbidity and mortality.

Diagnosis and Treatment of Delirium in 2006

Damage can take biologic, syndromic, social, and personal form, with correlations among the various levels of damage.

Damage Control

Evidence showing the effectiveness of psychopharmacologic and psychotherapeutic management of functional gastrointestinal disorders over standard medical treatment is increasing.

Functional GI Disorders: A Psychiatric Perspective

The perinatal period is a high-risk time for some women to experience a new onset or exacerbation of a mood disorder that may require emergency psychiatric care.

Critical Issues in Perinatal Psychiatric Emergency Care

A discussion of the recent research on the use of antidepressants in bipolar disorder (BD), and the methodologic principles that should guide this aspect of psychopharmacology.

Antidepressants and Bipolar Disorder: What Do Recent Studies Tell Us?

Administering drug dosages that are clinically effective while causing minimal side effects is a challenge for physicians. The latest data on antipsychotics, antidepressants, and other psychotropic drugs in relation to brain occupancy and plasma levels are reviewed here.

Psychotropic Drugs: Brain and Plasma Pharmacokinetics and the Therapeutic Window

There is a tendency to avoid psychiatric medications during pregnancy, but the high prevalence of psychiatric disorders in pregnant women means that women and their physicians must make impromptu decisions regarding the initiation or continuation of drug therapy.

Psychopharmacologic Therapy in Pregnancy: Effects on Newborns

Trichotillomania (hair-pulling) was once thought to be rare, but recent estimates indicate that it affects 2% of people.

Psychiatric Times Vol 23 No 6