Research News

Summaries of research findings that tell of a scientific need to "rethink psychiatry."

One in Five Children Treated with ADHD Stimulants Also Getting Antipsychotics

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About one in five children on Medicaid who are being given long-acting stimulants for ADHD are also being given antipsychotics, often for unapproved conditions.

Anxiety and the Severity of Mania

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Researchers from Spain, noting that "anxiety has scarcely been studied in acute mania," analyzed data from 242 patients admitted for a diagnosis of acute...

Risperdal Whistle-Blower Honored in Texas, Fired in Pennsylvania

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Allen Jones, the whistle blower whose testimony resulted in a $158 million settlement by Johnson & Johnson for fraudulent marketing of Risperdal in Texas,...

Anesthetize People to Treat PTSD Symptoms?

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"Breathing in xenon, a gas used in people for anesthesia, may help treat post-traumatic stress disorder and other conditions linked with fear and anxiety,"...

In Ireland, Antipsychotic Drugs Used Extensively On People With Learning Disabilities

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Over half of people with learning disabilities living in residential centers in Ireland are being prescribed antipsychotics.

Despite Official Recommendations, Depression Screening in Children is Not Supported by Research

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Earlier this year, the US Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) came out with the controversial recommendation that all adolescent and adult patients undergo depression...

The “BioPsychoSocialSpiritual” Model of Mental Health

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Andrew Weil writes about the history of the biomedical model, the rise of neurotransmitter-based theories of psychology, the proliferation of both mental health professionals...

Published Clinical Trials are Misleading, PLoS Says

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Research from the Center for Clinical Trials at Johns Hopkins finds troubling differences between publicly available information on medications and the information that pharmaceutical...

Childhood Abuse Predicts Lack of Resilience From Depression

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A study of 1,128 adults drawn from Canada's National Population Health Survey finds that more than three quarters (77%) recovered from depression in 2...

Schizophrenia Prevents Cancer; Antipsychotics May Cause It

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In a review of all 59,233 individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia in Sweden between 1965 and 2008, researchers from Sweden and the U.S. identified 6137...

Glucose Metabolism “Derangements” from Second Generation Antipsychotics Clarified

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New Zealand and Chinese investigators believe they have clarified the mechanisms by which second generation antipsychotics cause serious "derangements" in glucose metabolism in the...

“Global Pandemic” of Fake Medicines, Say Researchers

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Teams of researchers from around the world, including from the US government, tested 17,000 drug samples and found that up to 41% failed to meet quality standards.

What Are Best Practices For Psychosis And What Gets In The Way?

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Research investigates clinicians’ perspectives on best care practices and the complicated realities of providing care in the face of agency limitations and mechanized interventions.

British Psychological Society Critiques the DSM-5

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The British Psychological Society has "serious concerns about many aspects of the framework. In our response we have argued that the categorical framework of...

Pharma Data Sharing Efforts Off to a Slow Start

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Researchers discuss the preliminary results of clinical trial data sharing efforts by pharmaceutical companies and other groups.

Study Examines Voice Hearing Accounts of 499 Nonclinical Individuals

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Researchers look at voice hearing experiences shared by nonclinical samples, exploring these experiences in the general population.

Crowdfunding Science

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Scientific American explores a crowdfunded approach to researching methamphetamine addiction, suggesting the approach is adaptable to pursuing other questions that are challenged to find...

Familial Factors Affect Depression, BD, OCD, PD, and Phobias

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A study of 566 families with 1416 bipolar-disordered members, and 675 families with 1726 depressed members by researchers from Johns Hopkins and the University...

U.K. Antidepressant Prescriptions Rise 9% in 2011

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Almost 50 million prescriptions for antidepressants were issued in the U.K. in 2011, a rise of 9% over 2010. The increase is attributed, at...

Psychotropics Drive Record 4.02 Billion U.S. Prescriptions in 2011

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With drugs for ADHD increasing 17%, and an "unprecedented increase in patients taking antidepressants and antipsychotics," overall prescription drug sales in the United States...

Psychotherapy Shows Positive Outcomes in German Hospitals

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In what the authors describe as "the first meta-analysis on the effectiveness of psychotherapeutic hospital treatment in Germany," two Hamburg University Medical Center researchers...

AARP Joins Antipsychotic Lawsuit Against CA Nursing Home

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The AARP has joined an "unprecedented class-action lawsuit" against a California nursing home accused of using antipsychotics without informed consent from residents or family...

Mental Health Apps May Lead to Overdiagnosis, Study Finds

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A new study finds that mental health apps promote a one-dimensional view of mental health.

Minimal Evidence for Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder in Childhood

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Researchers offer a critical take on the inclusion of the Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder in the DSM-V.

Prescriber of Huge Amounts of Antipsychotic Drug Was Taking Kickbacks

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ProPublica has provided an update on their investigation of Dr. Michael Reinstein. "A former Chicago psychiatrist who was the nation's top prescriber of the...