Psychiatry News and Research

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Psychiatry is the treatment, study and prevention of mental disorders.

Genetic link to insomnia found

A new study has found certain genes that predispose a person to develop insomnia or sleep problems. This was one of the largest genome wide studies undertaken on insomnia. The study led by psychiatrist Murray Stein from the University of California San Diego was published in the latest issue of the journal Molecular Psychiatry.

13 Mar 2018

Heavy smoking linked to higher risk of psychoses

Smoking at least ten cigarettes a day is linked to a higher risk of psychoses compared to non-smoking young people. The risk is also raised if the smoking starts before the age of 13. This has been shown in a study led by Academy Research Fellow, Professor Jouko Miettunen. The results were recently published in the journal Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica.

12 Mar 2018

We may be genetically wired to be empathic finds study

According to a new study, the level of empathy we display may not be a result of our experiences and upbringing alone but also genetic. Researchers from Cambridge studied and made this novel discovery that appeared in the latest issue of the journal Translational Psychiatry.

12 Mar 2018

Study explores more about food insecurity among older adults

Social issues such as hunger, inadequate housing, social isolation, and poverty are linked to poor health, especially as we age. When community organizations and healthcare systems coordinate with each other, they are better able to help us address these concerns individually and as a society.

9 Mar 2018

Exposure to violence in childhood, low socioeconomic status associated with psychiatric disorders

Investing in diminishing socioeconomic status inequalities and in preventing violent events during childhood may improve the mental health of youths from low socioeconomic status backgrounds, according to a study conducted by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and Federal University of São Paulo.

8 Mar 2018

Air pollution exposure during fetal life related to brain abnormalities, cognitive impairment in children

A new study performed in the Netherlands has linked exposure to residential air pollution during fetal life with brain abnormalities that may contribute to impaired cognitive function in school-age children. The study, published in Biological Psychiatry, reports that the air pollution levels related to brain alterations were below those considered to be safe.

8 Mar 2018

Boosting the brain's immune cells may prevent or reduce severity of Alzheimer's disease

Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Research Institute researchers have published two new studies in Neuron that describe how TREM2, a receptor found on immune cells in the brain, interacts with toxic amyloid beta proteins to restore neurological function.

8 Mar 2018

Researchers seek to discover role of filter ventilation on addictive potential of cigarettes

Would banning ventilated filters on cigarettes protect public health? Scientists from multiple institutions, including a group of addiction neuroscience researchers from the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, are gathering evidence under funding from the National Institutes of Health's National Cancer Institute to potentially inform a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision about whether to recommend design changes to filtered cigarettes.

7 Mar 2018

Researchers show complex link between physical, behavioral characteristics and brain health

Mount Sinai researchers have shown, for the first time, the complex web of links between physical and behavioral characteristics, like age, body mass index (BMI), and substance use, and specific patterns of brain structure and function in patients with psychosis.

7 Mar 2018

Graduate students more likely to experience depression and anxiety, survey finds

Graduate students are more than six times as likely to experience depression and anxiety as compared to the general population, according to a comprehensive survey of 2,279 individuals conducted via social media and direct email.

7 Mar 2018

People with MDD feel more negative emotion when remembering painful experiences

People with major depressive disorder (MDD) feel more negative emotion when remembering painful experiences than people without the disorder, according to a new study in Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. The study reports that people with MDD were able to control the negative emotions about as well as people unaffected by MDD, but used somewhat different brain circuits to do so.

6 Mar 2018

People 85 and older with high cholesterol have reduced risk for cognitive decline, study reports

People aged 85 and older whose total cholesterol had increased from their levels at midlife had a reduced risk for marked cognitive decline, compared with those a decade younger whose cholesterol was similarly elevated, Mount Sinai researchers report in a new study.

6 Mar 2018

Levels of inflammatory biomarkers could predict effectiveness of ECT for people with depression

People with major depression that has not been well controlled by medications and who have a biomarker in their blood indicating a higher level of inflammation may benefit more than people with less inflammation from electroconvulsive therapy to ease symptoms of their depression, according to a new UCLA study.

6 Mar 2018

Study pinpoints gene that plays direct role in neurodevelopmental disorders

A study led by researchers at McMaster University has pinpointed a gene that is responsible for neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism.

5 Mar 2018

AD polygenic risk score could identify younger population with mild cognitive impairment

For the first time, an international team of scientists, led by researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, have determined that an Alzheimer's disease (AD) polygenic risk score can be used to correctly identify adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) who were only in their 50s. MCI is considered a precursor to AD.

5 Mar 2018

Study: Early psychosis intervention programs can substantially reduce patient mortality

In a new study, researchers at Lawson Health Research Institute, Western University and the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences have found that specialized programs for early psychosis can substantially reduce patient mortality.

2 Mar 2018

Study estimates incidence of first-episode psychosis in six countries

Young males, ethnic minorities and people living in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas are more likely to experience first-episode psychosis, defined as the first manifestation of one or more severe mental disorders including schizophrenia, bipolar affective disorder, and depression with psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions and cognitive disorganization.

2 Mar 2018

Peer-to-peer depression awareness program increases schoolmates' understanding and help-seeking

High school students can make a major impact on their schoolmates' understanding of depression, and their attitudes about seeking help for themselves or others, according to a new study from the University of Michigan Depression Center.

2 Mar 2018

Traumatic brain injuries may increase risk of Alzheimer’s disease earlier in life

Concussions and other traumatic brain injuries may increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease earlier in life, according to a study from UT Southwestern's Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute.

1 Mar 2018

Lithium treatment associated with lowest risk of rehospitalization for bipolar disorder patients

Individuals with bipolar disorder have the lowest risk of rehospitalization if treated with lithium, according to a study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in JAMA Psychiatry. Long-acting injections of antipsychotics were also effective, reducing the risk of rehospitalization by 30 percent compared with their oral counterparts.

28 Feb 2018

Psychiatry News and Research

Further Reading

Genetic link to insomnia found

Heavy smoking linked to higher risk of psychoses

We may be genetically wired to be empathic finds study

Study explores more about food insecurity among older adults

Exposure to violence in childhood, low socioeconomic status associated with psychiatric disorders

Air pollution exposure during fetal life related to brain abnormalities, cognitive impairment in children

Boosting the brain's immune cells may prevent or reduce severity of Alzheimer's disease

Researchers seek to discover role of filter ventilation on addictive potential of cigarettes

Researchers show complex link between physical, behavioral characteristics and brain health

Graduate students more likely to experience depression and anxiety, survey finds

People with MDD feel more negative emotion when remembering painful experiences

People 85 and older with high cholesterol have reduced risk for cognitive decline, study reports

Levels of inflammatory biomarkers could predict effectiveness of ECT for people with depression

Study pinpoints gene that plays direct role in neurodevelopmental disorders

AD polygenic risk score could identify younger population with mild cognitive impairment

Study: Early psychosis intervention programs can substantially reduce patient mortality

Study estimates incidence of first-episode psychosis in six countries

Peer-to-peer depression awareness program increases schoolmates' understanding and help-seeking

Traumatic brain injuries may increase risk of Alzheimer’s disease earlier in life

Lithium treatment associated with lowest risk of rehospitalization for bipolar disorder patients

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