News

Three years deep in despair, he’s swallowed every pill I prescribed...

The new Pope's message resonates with what is becoming a prevailing ethos of good mental health care--a belief that everyone has promise, can recover and rebuild from life's misfortunes and should be able to have what we all want.

President Obama has told his daughters that that he thinks smoking marijuana is a "bad idea." I will tell my grandchildren the same thing. But what do I know? Not a whole lot, I'm afraid. How about you?

Deep Brain Stimulation is a neurosurgical procedure initially developed for the management of treatment-refractory movement disorders. More recently, the rationale for the use of DBS in anorexia nervosa derives from several sources.

In March, the Supreme Court will need to set a national standard for the definition of intellectual disability. In doing so they will inevitably have to address a number of complications that arise when clinical constructs, such as intellectual disability, are used in the courtroom.

In the history of psychiatry, the First World War is often identified with the rise of the disorder of “shellshock.” However, many in both the medical community and the military establishment were dubious of the claim that war could produce psychiatric symptoms.

Thomas Szasz-a psychiatrist-was a lifelong ferocious critic of the institution of psychiatry. A significant body of discourse on the notion of mental disorder by psychiatrists and non-psychiatrists alike has been centered on understanding and responding to his critique.

Starting in 2015, psychiatrists will have to juggle antidepressant selections for Medicare patients. What might this mean for your patients?

Notwithstanding sparse treatment data, recent efforts are beginning to provide clinicians with some clear treatment guidelines for medically unstable adolescents with anorexia nervosa.

Practicing psychiatry in a correctional environment differs from traditional outpatient and inpatient venues and presents unique challenges. It can be a rewarding choice of workplace.

Statutes in 8 states are not designed to assure informed decision-making, say these psychiatrists; instead they represent an unprecedented effort by the government to use physician communications as an instrument for discouraging pregnant women from exercising their constitutional right to make their own reproductive choices.

Here's the story of a man with long-standing diabetes -- a pillar of the community-- who had been behaving strangely. He taught his physicians to look past the obvious clues and ultimately learn a lesson they never forgot.

Under the V of her cashmere sweater, sacs of silicone sag in tangled scar, their arc of cleavage a triumph...

In this CME article, the focus is on persons with a formally recognized recurrent wintertime mood disorder that rises to such a level that it merits a diagnostic title and clinical intervention.

Take our quiz to test your diagnostic skills on intellectual disability (intellectual development disorder), a subcategory of neurodevelopmental disorders in DSM-5.

The ethical status of suicide is not a question psychiatrists can ignore. After all, our duty to preserve and protect life is founded on moral values, even if they are so deeply embedded in our medical ethos that we no longer sense their moral underpinnings.

Psychiatry in China? Up until about a decade ago, that could have been considered an oxymoron. Yet, just as China has modernized and embraced a Chinese form of capitalism, so psychiatry is becoming modernized in a Chinese form of psychiatry.

How will economic development influence management of population aging so that the dignity and rights of older persons are respected and protected, particularly those who are vulnerable because of mental illness, social isolation, or physical debility? Insights here.

Snuggled into their seats like swaddled babes, moviegoers' safety seems implicit. It is utterly unimaginable that danger could ever be lurking in that enchanted darkness – except for the people on the screen.

It may be difficult for our American and European colleagues to imagine the constraints under which Russian psychiatrists practice. In Russia, treatment of the psychiatric population is at the mercy of government and society.

How prevalent is dependence on amphetamines, cocaine, opioids, and other illicit drugs across the world? What is the associated disease burden? Insights here.

Psychiatric treatment requires primary intervention and solid follow-up care, like diabetes, hypertension, and other medical conditions. More in this commentary by a resident in psychiatry.

This is the first in a series in which Dr Steve Moffic (and possibly other bloggers) revisits the blogs he has been writing for Psychiatric Times for the past several years.

Telehealth is here, and it’s here to stay. A telepsychiatrist gives a brief description of the setup from his home office.

Sleep-disordered breathing signs and symptoms overlap with mood, anxiety, and other psychiatric illnesses. In some cases, they may masquerade as these disorders, but SDB can also provoke and/or exacerbate other psychiatric conditions. Signs, risk factors, and clinical features in this Tipsheet.

In order to make positive changes in the field of psychiatry, it is important to appreciate and understand the current challenges and significant limitations of the present approach to psychiatric therapy.

It is important to note public misconceptions about the rare and frightening act of mass murder. This article sheds some light on what the author considers the 7 myths of mass murder.

In the eyes of many, the current societal approach to the treatment of psychiatric disorders cannot possibly be considered humane. More in this commentary.

Insurers appear to have plenty of leeway to continue-or even expand-the kind of anti-psychiatrist policies at the core of 2 lawsuits filed last year. Details here.

There is very little evidence for the efficacy of antidepressants in bipolar disorder, particularly for longer-term use. However, there are at least 9 alternatives to conventional antidepressants.