News

It is common for mental health professionals to label a patient as difficult, however, it remains unclear as to what the classification actually means or what it entails.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) may hold promise for patients with treatment-resistant and severe major depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, it may not be the best choice for patients with Parkinson (PD) disease who display certain compulsive behaviors, reported researchers from the Cleveland Clinic and from Brown Medical School (Providence, Rhode Island) at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurological Surgeons, which took place April 22-27 in San Francisco.

A discussion of the epidemiology, assessment, diagnostic dilemmas, and treatment of avoidant personality disorder.

The prevalence and debilitating nature of some of the personality disorders has impeded the study of psychopharmacology in these conditions. However, important advances have been made in the last several years.

Suicidality in patients with borderline personality disorder is chronic. It is important to distinguish these patients from those with classic mood disorders, who are suicidal only when acutely depressed.

This article focuses on data concerning the efficacy of mood stabilizers in the treatment of BPD.

Focus on Prehospital Stroke Services:

The evidence showing a relationship between mental disorders in childhood and adulthood has increased in the last several decades.

An examination of recent research on psychosocial treatments for personality disorders, including randomized controlled trials and empirically supported therapies as well as dialectical behavior therapy.

Mentalization-based treatment (MBT) and transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP) are relatively complex and specialized treatments for the treatment of borderline personality disorder.

When assessing a sleep-related problem in a psychiatric patient, investigating all possible causes may be more helpful than assuming the complaint is a result of medication or the underlying condition.

Mental health screening and treatment plans for soldiers deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan are being scrutinized after criticisms of the program have appeared in print and Web publications.

Dr Ronald Pies questions the statements in regards to antidepressant response time from an October 2005 article in Psychiatric Times.

Although psychiatrists and other mental health professionals are more likely to be stalked than the average person, they receive little training regarding stalking.

How does the difference between objective evidence and subjective evidence relate to the practice of psychiatry?

You are surprised when a patient of yours, a physician recovering from a substance abuse problem, tests positive for morphine. Do you believe his explanation of a false-positive result?

Researchers found a high incidence of health problems such as obesity, hypertension, and diabetes in predominantly Hispanic outpatients with chronic mental disorders.

With expansion of the concept of bipolar disorder (BD), there has been concern about the potential for overdiagnosis. However, diagnostic errors in bipolar disorder are currently skewed towards underdiagnosis.

The psychiatric community has a need for diagnostic and predictive tests. Some recent techniques have just become available for clinical care.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for children with anxiety disorders may be especially effective when the family is included in treatment.

Dr Muller describes a case of a patient with a paranoid psychosis who clearly needs help, yet refuses treatment.

Should physicians be allowed to assist in their patients' dying, and how can physician-assisted suicide be reconciled with the physician’s role as a healer?

The common sense notion that a child will benefit from an improvement in her mother’s depression has been confirmed in a prospective evaluation.

A House committee is seeking to prohibit FDA members who have a financial interest in a company proposing a new drug (or in its competitors) from voting on new drug approvals from that company.

Antidepressants may have a protective effect on the hippocampal atrophy seen in patients with severe, untreated depression. This atrophy may be caused by an overabundance of glucocorticoids.

In a 20-year longitudinal study, it was found that after acute hospitalization, continuous psychosis was diagnosed in only 30% of patients with schizophrenia; 20% of patients showed no signs of reoccurrence of psychosis after the acute phase.

A study of primary care training directors conducted by Hoyle Leigh,MD, Ronna Mallios, MPH, and Deborah C. Stewart, MD, found thatmost directors believed their psychiatry training programs were inadequate.

Drinking a carbohydrate-rich beverage appeared to improve symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) in a small double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Physicians should be prepared to screen for posttraumatic responses that may be triggered by routine hospital care in previously traumatized patients.

The Risk of Cerebrovascular Problems in Patients With Dementia Treated With Atypical Antipsychotics