United Nations Rep Brings Attention to Human Rights Violations in Psychiatry

20
Dr. Dainius Pūras argues that the status quo in mental health treatment is no longer acceptable and demands political action to promote human rights.

Researchers Identify 27 Categories of Emotion

3
A new study finds that emotions may be represented by 27 categories, with each category relating to others in a more complex and continuous fashion than previously understood.

Report Calls For Policy Changes In Response To Dependence and Withdrawal From Prescribed Drugs

13
Statistics from the UK reveal that prescriptions for painkillers and antidepressants continue to rise despite concerns over dependence and debilitating withdrawal effects. The British Medical Association (BMA) Board of Science has released a report that acknowledges changes to medical practice, research and policy necessary for addressing the dependence and withdrawal effects of benzodiazepines, opioids, and antidepressants.

Scientists Call for Increased Transparency in Research

2
Scientists at the Yale Collaboration for Research Integrity and Transparency (CRIT) published a new policy paper this month criticizing the current state of biomedical research and calling for improved transparency in research methods.

Antidepressants Increase Risk of Death in ICU

0
An analysis of electronic records from admissions to four ICU's in 2001-2008 showed that the 1,876 patients who were on an SSRI or SNRI...

Ethics Complaints Over DSM Filed With the APA

5
Paula Caplan writes in Psychology Today about ethics complaints which have been filed with the APA (including one by her as an "interested party")...

“Open Access” for the Activist Community

6
As many MiA readers are aware, a substantial percentage of mental health-related research reports — hundreds of thousands of articles, including many of direct relevance to community-based activists, advocates and clinicians — are currently held behind paywalls. While there are now a growing number of initiatives intended to promote (free) “open access,” many important publications remain inaccessible. Many activists and scholars believe open access is a significant social justice issue. We have put together a shareable Dropbox folder with thematically grouped research articles, measures and evaluation resources.

Addressing Non-Adherence to Antipsychotic Medication: A Harm Reduction Approach

0
Article in the Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing Go to "Addressing Non-Adherence to Antipsychotic Medication: A Harm Reduction Approach"          ...

ADHD Medication Slows Growth, Increases Obesity

0
Treating attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with stimulants affects growth and is likely to cause a higher BMI in later adolescence, according to research from...

Nardo on RAISE study: “Spin is for Politicians”

2
Dr. Mickey Nardo adds to the ongoing discussion about the RAISE study results. He writes: “If there is ‘spin’ in the reporting of this study, we need to know about it. I personally think that it’s more important for RAISE to be reported completely and honestly than whether it comes out like they [or I] want it to come out. We don’t need some sanitized version of RAISE to tell us we need to turn our attention to a full bodied approach to the treatment of First Episode psychotic patients. We all already know that. What we do need is to have our confidence restored in our research community – that they will honestly and clearly report their findings whether they are clean as a whistle or an unholy mess.”

A Blow to STAT’s Credibility: Ghostwriting/PR Influence

0
From HealthNewsReview.org: STAT recently published an op-ed praising the role of drug company sales representatives. The physician listed as the author has now revealed that he did...

Bullying Affects Mental and Physical Health Long-Term

4
Researchers from Boston Children's Hospital analyzed data from 4297 children surveyed over 3 time points (fifth, seventh and tenth grades) to find that bullying...

Can Bloggers Save Science?

2
-Mind the Brain's James Coyne talks about why so many news stories about health and psychology studies are so bad.

Glaxo Claims Contrition and Changes in its Sales Practices

1
Following a record-setting spate of settlements, GlaxoSmithKline North America President Dierdre Connelly touts Glaxo's move away from a sales model that encourages the misbehavior...

How Avocados and Nuts Could Boost Intelligence

0
From Medical News Today: A new study suggests that higher levels of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) in the bloodstream are correlated with greater general intelligence in...

Meta-analysis Shows Antidepressants Offer Little to No Benefit to Well-Being of Depressed Children and...

2
Seeking to rectify the fact that "no meta-analysis has included measures of quality of life, global mental health, self-esteem, or autonomy" (or self-reports of...

“Are Anxiety Drugs Making Us Less Eager To Lend A Helping Hand?”

0
For the Huffington Post, David Freeman asks “By tamping down anxious feelings, could it be that these so-called “anxiolytic” drugs are blunting our empathy and...

Too Corrupt, Insane & Ridiculous to Be Reformed? Even Establishment Psychiatrists Distance Themselves From...

48
What does it tell us about the current state of psychiatry when some of the biggest names in the psychiatric establishment are now distancing themselves from psychiatry’s diagnostic system and its treatments? The institution of psychiatry has become corrupted by Big Pharma to such a degree that it has become, even to the mainstream media, so obviously ridiculous and so dangerously insane that politically astute psychiatrists are trying to separate themselves from their institution.

Citizens Petition Calls for Sexual Side Effect Warnings

22
Researchers take action after study exposes enduring sexual dysfunction as a potential side effect of serotonin reuptake inhibiting antidepressants, 5α-reductase inhibitors, and isotretinoin.

Lowering the Threshold for Bipolar: “More Harm Than Good”

1
Researchers publishing in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry argue that broadening the diagnostic criteria for bipolar disorder would result in a greater increase in...

Brain Imaging Shows Trauma-Related Differences in DID

8
Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) has a complicated and controversial history. In this study, published in PLoS 1, researchers from London and the Netherlands explore...

Doctors Too Reliant on Pfizer’s Depression Questionnaire

1
From The Telegraph: Depression is being overdiagnosed due to doctors' reliance on a nine-question form designed by pharmaceutical company Pfizer to assess patients for depression. Article...

“Is Science Really Better than Journalism at Self-correction?”

1
-A co-founder of Retraction Watch suggests editors of scientific and medical journals could learn some things from Rolling Stone about correcting errors.

Study Finds First-Episode Psychosis Patients Fare Better with Vitamin D

14
Researchers examine the relationship between vitamin D and clinical and cognitive symptoms in first-episode psychosis.

Study Shows Clozapine Can Result in Serious Gastrointestinal Complications

19
A large observational study published in CNS Drugs sheds light on serious adverse effects of the ‘gold standard’ antipsychotic Clozapine.