Lower Education Linked to Higher Antipsychotic Use in Swedish Elderly
Elderly people in Sweden are five times more likely to be taking antipsychotics if they have a diagnosis of dementia, according to research published in Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. And among those people with dementia, the lower their education the higher the likelihood they’re taking antipsychotics.
More than Half of UK Antipsychotic Prescribing is Not for Authorized Conditions
More than half of the prescriptions for antipsychotic drugs in the UK are being issued "off-label" to treat conditions other than those for which the drugs are approved, according to a large study published in the British Medical Journal Open. Researchers also found significantly higher levels of prescribing of the medications to poorer people.
Retraction Watch and HealthNewsReview.org Get Large Grants to Expand
Early in December, HealthNewsReview.org announced receipt of a $1.3 million grant from the Laura and John Arnold Foundation to re-start and significantly expand its operations. And in late December Retraction Watch announced that it had received $400,000 from the MacArthur Foundation. Both websites specialize in monitoring and reporting on poor practices in science, medicine and psychiatry.
Sexual Dysfunction from Antipsychotics Common — But Poorly Monitored by Physicians
Describing the prevalence and management of adverse effects from antipsychotics as "a neglected area" of study, a team of researchers from the UK has published a systematic review in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. They aimed to identify the prevalence of, and management strategies for nine categories of adverse effects, including sedation, weight gain, metabolic syndrome, sexual dysfunction and cardiovascular effects.
Government Calls US Benzodiazepine Prescription Levels “Worrisome”
Despite the well-known risks of the drugs, especially for the elderly, prescription use of addictive benzodiazepine sedatives in the United States increases steadily with age, according to a large-scale study published in JAMA Psychiatry. Overall, as of 2008, 5.2% of American adults were taking the drugs. The study also showed that women were twice as likely to be taking benzodiazepines as men. National Institute of Mental Health director Thomas Insel called the findings "worrisome."
Long-term Painkiller Use on Rise, 1/3rd Dangerously Mix with Anti-anxiety Meds
About 9% fewer Americans are using prescription opioids than were five years ago, but those people are taking more of the drugs for longer periods of time, according to a study by pharmacy benefits manager Express Scripts reported in FiercePharma. And nearly one-third are being put in serious risk of overdose death by taking the opioids alongside prescriptions for benzodiazepine sedatives, stated the New York Times.
Media and Public Frequently Exaggerate Significance of Behavioral Genetics Findings
Other studies have shown that abstracts and press releases often mislead journalists about the significance of findings in behavioral genetics; but a new study...
Not an Onion Study: Laughing Gas vs Air for Treatment of Depression
"Nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, has shown early promise as a potential treatment for severe depression in patients whose symptoms don’t respond to standard therapies," stated a press release about a widely-reported study that was published in Biological Psychiatry. The press release also stated that over a third of the patients improved after being given air.
Thoughtful Insight, Not Lack of It, Drives Some Patients to Quit Psychiatric Medications
Rather than a "lack of insight," it is actually a thoughtful weighing of complex risks and benefits that ultimately drives some people diagnosed with bipolar disorder to eschew psychiatric medications, according to a qualitative study in the Journal of Affective Disorders. And these people often develop sophisticated strategies in their efforts to manage without medications.
Psychiatrists Discuss Psychiatry’s Poor Public Image and What to Do About It
The January 2015 issue of Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica has a section of freely available articles discussing the public image of psychiatry from a variety...
New Form of Mice Experiment Reveals Antidepressant’s Dangers Earlier
Scientists from the University of Utah say they have discovered a new way of doing mice experiments that more sensitively and quickly reveals negative...
Do Insurance Companies Profit from Rising Drug Costs?
Many insurance companies have little interest in slowing the rise of inappropriate over-prescribing of pharmaceutical drugs, according to a study in Health Policy. That's...
Antipsychotic Drug Associated with Potentially Fatal Skin Rash
The US Food and Drug Administration is warning the public that the antipsychotic medication ziprasidone "is associated with a rare but serious skin reaction...
Psychiatrists’ Prescriptions for First-time Psychosis Often Don’t Follow Guidelines
"Many patients with first-episode psychosis receive medications that do not comply with recommended guidelines for first-episode treatment," states a National Institute of Mental Health...
Strong Placebo Response to Antidepressants Forms Even Before Drug Trials Start
A strong placebo response is apparently more often caused by people's expectations coming into a randomized, blinded clinical trial, than it is caused by...
Psychologists “Devised” and Played “Central Role” in CIA Torture Program
Professional psychologists designed most of the main techniques and strategies and played ongoing, active, central roles in the CIA's torture of people it was...
Some Antidepressants Worse than Others for Causing Sexual Dysfunction
In a review of the scientific evidence about sexual dysfunction caused by antidepressants, Australian researchers determined that some of the medications are worse than...
Biological Explanations for Antidepressant Withdrawal
Two South African researchers review scientific understanding of the brain changes that lead to antidepressant discontinuation syndrome (ADS) in Human Psycho-pharmacology: Clinical and Experimental....
Nurse with Secret Recordings Exposes More about University of Minnesota Research Scandal
A senior nurse who has been involved for 22 years with the University of Minnesota's psychiatric research program is accusing the university of a...
Common Benzodiazepine Sedatives May Induce Aggression
Benzodiazepine medications that are commonly used for calming or sedating people can sometimes apparently cause violent or aggressive responses in some people, according to...
Two Canadian Sources of Independent Health & Mental Health Research Shut Down
The Canadian Women's Health Network (CWHN), for two decades a major source of critical, independent research and information on women's health and mental health,...
California Foster Care Physicians Taking Double the Average in Pharma Money
Drug companies spent over $14 million from 2010 to 2013 to "woo" California doctors who specialize in treating foster children, according to part three...
American Psychological Association Begins Inquiry into Torture Allegations
"The American Psychological Association (APA) last week named a former federal prosecutor to lead an investigation into its role in supporting the U.S. government’s...
Global Rise in ADHD Diagnoses: Medicine or Marketing?
The dramatic rise in ADHD spreading from the United States to the rest of the world is more an "economic and cultural plague" than...
Where Critical Psychiatry Meets Community Resilience
The International Society for Ethical Psychology and Psychiatry had the clout to draw a stellar line-up of presenters to its recent conference, including internationally prominent critics like David Healy, Peter Gøtzsche, Robert Whitaker and Allen Frances. There were lots of learnings and even some tense discussions, but one of the most intriguing aspects of the entire conference was the way in which scientific and social issues became deeply intertwined, especially when presenters reached for better pathways forward.
