Anxiety News and Research

Latest Anxiety News and Research

Cymbalta approved in Europe for generalised anxiety disorder

Eli Lilly and Co and Boehringer Ingelheim have announced that the European Commission has approved the use of Cymbalta (duloxetine) for the treatment of Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD).

24 Aug 2008

A single abortion does not jeopardise a woman's mental health

According to the American Psychological Association (APA) there is no evidence than an abortion increases the risk of mental health problems for adult women.

19 Aug 2008

Psychological stress and how it might affect allergy sufferers

A new study here shows that even slight stress and anxiety can substantially worsen a person's allergic reaction to some routine allergens.

14 Aug 2008

Sexual dysfunction among older adults

Sexual dysfunction is not an inevitable part of aging, but it is strongly related a number of factors, such as mental and physical health, demographics and lifetime experiences, many of which are interrelated, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Chicago.

13 Aug 2008

California under pressure to ban bisphenol A in baby bottles

Growing anxiety by consumers over over the possible side-effects of a chemical commonly used in plastic baby bottles and baby formula cans has prompted California lawmakers to consider whether the use of the chemical should be banned.

12 Aug 2008

COMT gene variation affects fear processing, anxiety

Inborn differences may help explain why trauma gives some people bad memories and others the nightmare of post-traumatic stress. Scientists in Germany and the United States have reported evidence linking genes to anxious behavior. The findings appear in the August issue of Behavioral Neuroscience, published by the American Psychological Association.

10 Aug 2008

Brain imaging study shows context and personality are both key in understanding our responses to emotional facial expressions

It is well appreciated that facial expressions play a major role in non-verbal social communication among humans and other primates, because faces provide rapid access to information about the identity as well as the internal states and intentions of others.

6 Aug 2008

Odds of experiencing sexual aggression vastly greater when college women binge drink

According to researchers at the University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA), the odds of 18- and 19-year-old college women experiencing sexual aggression are 19 times greater when they binge drink than when they don't drink.

6 Aug 2008

Latest information questions value of PSA test for men over 75

The latest information regarding the PSA (prostate-specific antigen) test for prostate cancer, is advising men age 75 and older not to be screened.

5 Aug 2008

Children who are fearful more at risk of anxiety issues

Research from Queensland University of Technology (QUT) has revealed that while many young children love to be scared by a ride on a roller coaster, the horror of a scary book or movie, and delight in the frights of a ghost train, those who demonstrate a strong dislike for such activities could be more likely to have anxiety issues.

4 Aug 2008

New resource helps women with diabetes through healthy pregnancies

Pregnancy is a time of great excitement and anticipation. It also can be a time of anxiety, especially for women with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Pregnancy in women who have diabetes is automatically considered high-risk. But a new, easy-to-read booklet has information to help women with diabetes experience safe, healthy pregnancies.

3 Aug 2008

Mechanism for postpartum depression found in the brains of mice

Researchers have pinpointed a mechanism in the brains of mice that could explain why some human mothers become depressed following childbirth. The discovery could lead to improved treatment for postpartum depression.

31 Jul 2008

Bladder problems may leave mark on brain contributing to sleep and attention problems

Bladder problems may leave a mark on the brain, by changing patterns of brain activity, possibly contributing to disrupted sleep and problems with attention. For one in six Americans who have overactive bladder, the involuntary bladder contractions that often trigger more frequent urges to urinate, such mind-body connections may be of more than academic interest.

29 Jul 2008

How anti-depressants and cocaine interact with brain

In a first, scientists from Weill Cornell Medical College and Columbia University Medical Center have described the specifics of how brain cells process antidepressant drugs, cocaine and amphetamines. These novel findings could prove useful in the development of more targeted medication therapies for a host of psychiatric diseases, most notably in the area of addiction.

28 Jul 2008

Patient liaison is the focus of a new medical centre

"I was completely stunned. Nearly everything he was saying to me was going right over the top of my head. I could see his lips moving but I could not process or absorb his words"- a patient on hearing her doctor diagnose breast cancer.

28 Jul 2008

Pain-relieving gel eases mammography discomfort

The simple application of a pain-relieving gel may reduce the breast discomfort some women experience during mammography exams, according to the results of a clinical trial published in the online edition of Radiology.

22 Jul 2008

HALO Ablation System shows great promise for precancerous esophagus disease

BARRX Medical, Inc. has announced that 98.4 percent of patients having a precancerous condition of their esophagus called Barrett's esophagus were free of the disease 2.5 years after non-surgical, endoscopic treatment with the HALO ablation system.

21 Jul 2008

Oxytocin may inhibit social phobia

Swedish and British scientists have shown using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) that the hormone oxytocin can inhibit feelings of anxiety in specific individuals. Their discovery might lead to a better understanding and the improved treatment of psychiatric affections in which people feel distressed when meeting others, such as in cases of autism and social phobia.

20 Jul 2008

Coffee and smoking notorious at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings

More than one million Americans currently participate in the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) program. While AA participants are reportedly notorious for their coffee drinking and cigarette smoking, very little research has quantified their consumption of these two products. Recent findings confirm that coffee and cigarette use among this population is greater than among the general U.S. population: most AA members drink coffee and more than half smoke.

19 Jul 2008

Scare factor may lead to mistaken identification

Researchers at Goldsmiths, University of London have conducted a study that highlights the fragility of eyewitness identification used within the criminal justice system. The study shows that stress and fear reduce the likelihood of successful identification, bringing into question a victim's ability to identify the perpetrator of a crime.

17 Jul 2008