Experts Decry Dangerous Use of Antipsychotics in Children
In a featured article for Psychiatric Services, psychiatrists from Dartmouth raise the alarm on the increasing numbers of children prescribed dangerous antipsychotic drugs. Despite the fact that data on the safety of long-term use of these drugs in this vulnerable population ādo not exist,ā the rate of children and adolescents being prescribed antipsychotic drugs have continued to increase over the past fifteen years.
“Unexpected Advantages of Anxiety”
PsyBlog discusses various studies that show "unexpected advantages" to having somewhat higher levels of anxiety. Many people feel that those who are more easily...
Effort to Curb Antipsychotics for Dementia Announced
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is launching an initiative to curb the use of antipsychotic medications for nursing home residents with dementia....
Economic Policy Uncertainty Linked to Higher Suicide Rates in Men
A new study, published in Social Indicators Research, investigates the association between economic policy uncertainty and suicide rates in the US.
Spinning Straw into Gold: When Science Becomes Fiction
In Grimmās fairy tale Rumpelstiltskin, an impish little man helps a girl spin straw into gold. This story seems an apt metaphor for how legitimate neuroscience research can become transformed into sensationalist claims regarding the causes and treatment of ADHD.
Is Xanax Really the Bad Guy?
While any effort to generate awareness and potentially curb the benzodiazepine epidemic is commendable, we have to ask ourselves, is Xanax just the scapegoat in this situation? Will legislative action and media attention for only one benzodiazepine out of so many make any difference?
Researchers Canāt Predict Whether Childhood ADHD Will Impact Adult Functioning
New research has found that a childhood ADHD diagnosis is not predictive of adult functioning in boys.
āReducing Future Suicide Attempts by Forging Connectionā
A newĀ study published Tuesday inĀ PLOS Medicine may offer evidence for an intervention for people who have already been hospitalized for a suicide attempt.Ā The...
āStudy Links Mobile Device Addiction to Depression and Anxietyā
A study published in the journalĀ Computers in Human Behavior found that addictions to mobile devices are linked to anxiety and depression in college students....
Popular Drug Reveals the Issue of “Off-Label” Use
FromĀ The Washington Post: Despite major lawsuits and detailed reports pertaining to severe health risks associated with the antipsychotic Seroquel, the drug remains one of...
I Wonder if There is Some Axis II Going on Here? Further Thoughts on...
This blog was prompted by an invitation to do a guest post on the site of one of my favorite bloggers, 1 Boring Old Man. This is my response to the notion that there are certain conditions - Schizophrenia among them - that correspond more directly to biomedical conditions
Intimate Partner Violence Doubles Risk for Postnatal Depression in Malaysian Women
Women in Malaysia exposed to intimate partner violence are twice as likely to experience postnatal depression.
Hidden Invaders
FromĀ Discover Magazine: Some children's symptomsĀ of psychiatric disorders, including OCD, psychosis, and eating disorders, are caused by an autoimmune response to infections resulting inĀ brain inflammation.
"PANS...
Interview with Gary Greenberg: The DSM is the Key to the Health Care Treasury
BrainBlogger has an interview with Gary Greenberg, psychotherapist and author of The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry. "The (Diagnostic...
“Fuzzy Thinking” Common to Bipolar and Depression? Or to Psychotropics?
Women diagnosed with bipolar or depression did not perform as well on tests measuring the ability to "sustain attention and respond quickly."
An Overlooked Factor in the Opioid Crisis
FromĀ It's Not Just an Opioid Crisis: The media are saturated with coverage of the familial and community devastation that has resulted from the opioid...
Why We Fell for Clean Eating
FromĀ The Guardian: Not only is the clean eating movement based on pseudoscientific beliefs not backed up by evidence, but it may also lead to...
Federal Regulators Urge Cuts in Antipsychotics for Seniors
An Office of the Inspector General reportĀ says that nearly nine out of 10 prescriptions for antipsychotics given to Medicare beneficiaries are for unapproved uses....
The Shamanic View of Mental Illness
FromĀ UPLIFT: In the shamanic view, emotional distress and psychosis signal a spiritual awakening or emergence, not a pathology. Western cultures can learn a great...
Thomas Insel Leaves the Google-Spawned Verily for a Start-Up
FromĀ Wired: Thomas Insel, neuroscientist and former head of the National Institutes of Mental Health, is leaving his role at the Google-spawned health science company...
Large Study Finds Epigenetic Changes Associated with Trauma Explained by Smoking
A new study suggests that epigenetic changes that have been associated with trauma may actually be due to environmental toxins.
Can Education Level Predict Prescription Drug Misuse in Young Adults?
A new study examines the extent to which patterns in prescription drug misuse and substance use disorder symptoms can be predicted by education level
Don’t Blame Trump’s Brain
FromĀ Discover Magazine:Ā Using psychiatry and neuroscience to explain President Trump's personality and behavior leads to circular reasoning.
"We donāt need these kinds of quasi-scientific analyses of...
“More Evidence that Antipsychotics Shrink the Brainā
New research finds that brain matter loss in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia is correlated with antipsychotic use, according to Psych Central. The analysis suggests that the continued use of antipsychotics is linked with progressive cortical gray matter loss.
Antipsychotics for Depression: Added Risk for Little Benefit
A review of research on antipsychotic medications as an adjunctive treatment for depression published this week in PLoS Medicine finds that the widespread practice...
