News

I haven't conducted a scientific poll on this, but it seems as if more studies are being published lately on how stress takes a toll on our health. One study concluded that chronic stress at work is a risk factor for metabolic syndrome.1 Another showed how stressful effects of marital conflicts at home can slow wound healing and suggested that hospitals find ways to minimize stress in patients before surgery.2 And another study described how multiple negative life events can even be a risk factor for death, especially in people with low levels of income and education.3

Congress agreed in December to drop from its consideration of a budget reconciliation bill a provision that would have allowed family therapists and counselors to bill Medicare for mental health diagnoses. Many psychiatrists viewed the proposed legislation as a scope-of-practice attack by non-MDs.

Research Review: Treating Major Depressive Disorder With MAOIs: Effect of Delivery System on Cardiovascular Events

Insights Into Depression & Anxiety: Living With an Ambiguity in Clinical Practice: Antidepressant Drug-Drug Interactions

Poetry of the Times

CMEducator: Recognizing and Managing Bipolar Disorder

Insights Into Depression and Anxiety: Overview of the Anxiety Disorders

A limited number of back issues of Psychiatric Issues in Emergency Care Settings are available. Each issue is focused on a specific topic of interest to clinicians working in emergency department and psychiatric emergency service settings. Please use the coupon below to order the issues. Cost is $10 per copy, including shipping within the United States.

Anabolic steroids have gone from an appropriate treatment for men with hypogonadism to an agent abused by athletes, bodybuilders, adolescents, and young adults. Use of steroids at levels 10 to 100 times those of therapeutic dosages can cause psychiatric symptoms, such as aggression, mania, depression, and psychosis. Steroid abusers often "stack" several steroids or "pyramid" agents through a 4- to 12-week cycle. Presenting complaints of steroid abusers include muscle spasms, dizziness, frequent urination, and menstrual abnormalities. Signs may include high blood pressure, needle marks, icteric eyes, muscle hypertrophy, and edema; testicular atrophy and gynecomastia in men; and hirsutism and atrophied breasts in women. Mood changes can occur within a week of first use, and body changes may occur after acute behavioral disturbances.

Wang PS, Schneeweiss S, Avorn J, et al. Risk of death in elderly users of conventional vs. atypical antipsychotic medications. N Engl J Med. 2005;353:2335-2441.

Psychiatric symptoms are not uncommon in patients with autoimmune disorders, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Sjögren syndrome, temporal arteritis, sarcoidosis, scleroderma, Hashimoto thyroiditis, and myasthenia gravis. The CNS is frequently involved with many of these disorders. The lifetime risk of depression in patients with MS is 50.3%, with demyelination, inflammation, and neuroendocrine response implicated. In patients with MS of 10 years' duration, 56% may show cognitive decline. Included in the diagnostic criteria for SLE are seizures and psychosis, including visual hallucinations and paranoia. Cognitive impairment can occur in 79% of patients with SLE. Cognitive dysfunction is also seen in patients with Sjögren syndrome.

Pavuluri MN, Birmaher B, Naylor MW. Pediatric bipolar disorder: a review of the past 10 years. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2005; 44:846-871.

Compliance is a major issue in treatment of schizophrenia. How can compliance be improved, and can newer formulations make that compliance easier?

Funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the STAR*D project is one of the largest depression treatment studies ever conducted, with more than 4,000 participants. Results from the second phase of the study will be published over the next year. In this issue PT readers will find a preliminary review of data drawn from the first 1,500 enrollees.

Postmortem studies indicate that neural circuit abnormalities in schizophrenia could be reflected in gamma-band synchrony. We review findings of recent studies that demonstrate abnormal synchrony in the gamma band of the EEG in chronic schizophrenia patients, and point to links between gamma oscillations and some of the core symptoms of schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia poses a challenge for diagnosis and treatment at least in part because it remains a syndromal diagnosis without clearly understood neuropathological bases or treatments with clearly understood mechanisms of action. Neuroimaging research promises to advance understanding of the unique pathological processes that contribute to this syndrome, and to foster both better appreciation of how current treatments work, and how future treatments should be developed.

Although several clinical studies suggest that cognitive impairments in schizophrenia are associated with reduced stimulation of dopamine receptors in the prefrontal cortex, mounting evidence suggests that other monoaminergic neurotransmitter systems may also be involved. We provide an overview of neurotransmitters that hold promise as therapeutic interventions for the cognitive deficit in schizophrenia.

It was not too long ago that the management of schizophrenia focused primarily on symptom relief in inpatient and outpatient settings. Over the past two decades, there has been a paradigm shift in our approach in the overall management of schizophrenia, toward preventive and early interventions. What are some of these management techniques, and how well do they work?

Long recognized by peers and students alike for his teaching excellence, Henry Nasrallah, MD, was named Teacher of the Year at the 18th annual U.S. Psychiatric & Mental Health Congress. In an interview with PT, Nasrallah talks about his passion for the field of psychiatry and his clinical research in schizophrenia.

Alcohol and substance use disorders take a tremendous toll on society as a whole and also require significant emergency department (ED) resources. Alcohol use and abuse in the United States accounts for over 100,000 deaths each year1 and costs more than $185 billion annually.2 A study of the effects of alcohol-related disease and injuries found that the number of patients who presented with these conditions increased by 18% from 1992 to 2000.3

Psychological debriefing was developed as a way to intervene with large numbers of trauma survivors in circumstances in which individual evaluation and treatment are not possible, such as after mass trauma, terrorist attacks, or disasters. The most commonly used model of debriefing is Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD), a structured protocol developed by Mitchell.1 CISD has been used quite frequently with rescuers, first responders, and law enforcement personnel. After the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001, CISD was widely applied to groups of persons who were affected by the attacks.

The use of benzodiazepines in psychiatry and general medicine is fraught with controversy because of the potential for abuse and dependence. In daily practice, clinicians vary widely in their comfort level with prescribing this class of medications, whether for short-term relief of panic or for long-term prophylaxis of generalized anxiety. The use of benzodiazepines in acutely traumatized persons is particularly controversial.

Assessment and management of dual diagnosis--that is, the comorbidity of substance use disorder in persons with mental illness--is a major challenge for clinicians, especially in the emergency department (ED). It is widely accepted, but perhaps less well appreciated in the clinical realm, that substance abuse comorbidity is more the rule than the exception in persons with serious mental illness.

Proper evaluation of patients for alcohol and substance use disorders is usually time-consuming. When done in a busy emergency department (ED), assessment is often rushed, increasing the likelihood of misdiagnosis and, therefore, mismanagement. Because the evaluation is a patient's first step to effective therapy, it should be conducted as efficiently and effectively as possible.

If done properly, the assessment of alcohol and substance use disorders in the emergency department (ED) or psychiatric emergency service can be the first step toward recovery. A proper assessment, however, can be extremely taxing for both the clinician and the patient. This article offers a paradigm for performing a rapid and comprehensive evaluation in the ED of medically stable adults with alcohol and substance use disorders.

Poetry of the Times

As the new science content editor of Psychiatric Times, long-time contributor and editorial board member Ronald Pies, M.D., will collaborate with editors to expand the depth, breadth and credibility of the publication.

Profile of a Center of Excellence: University of Michigan's Residential Aphasia Program

Aphasia: It's Never Too Late to Offer Patients Hope