Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

$Study finds link between osteoporosis, fracture$

Study finds link between osteoporosis, fracture

An international study of more than 60,000 women has drawn new light on the relationship between osteoporosis and fractures.Scientists call for more to be done to identify and treat patients at the highest risk of fractures.Osteoporosis is more common in women who have fractured bones when they were younger and they experience a similar loss in health-related quality of life as those with arthritis, lung disease, diabetes and other chronic diseases.

18 Aug 2010

Moderate wine consumption associated with better cognitive performance

A large prospective study of 5033 men and women in the Troms- Study in northern Norway has reported that moderate wine consumption is independently associated with better performance on cognitive tests. The subjects (average age 58 and free of stroke) were followed over 7 years during which they were tested with a range of cognitive function tests.

18 Aug 2010

Iyengar yoga program improves quality of life for breast cancer patients

University of Alberta research fellow Amy Speed-Andrews has examined how a specialized Iyengar yoga program for women currently in treatment for breast cancer, and who have completed treatment, makes a difference in their recovery.

18 Aug 2010

Study unveils ways new moms can lose baby weight after childbirth

New moms who returned to work soon after delivery, had childcare help, breastfed, and did not experience postpartum depression were the ones most able to lose the baby weight within 6 months of giving birth, according to a new research study.

18 Aug 2010

Psychological support from health visitors prevents depression after child birth: Study

The world's first ever analysis of data from a full scale clinical trial in adults shows that training Health Visitors to assess and psychologically support mothers after childbirth can prevent the development of depression over the following year.But the substantial reduction in the number of NHS health visitors was identified by researchers as a key issue for the health and well-being of mums.

18 Aug 2010

Study finds black patients receive fewer opoid medications than whites

Black patients are prescribed fewer pain medications than whites and few women receive medications strong enough to manage their chronic pain, according to a study in the August issue of Journal of Pain.University of Michigan Health System researchers studied nearly 200 patients with chronic pain who sought help from a specialty pain center. Researchers analyzed the number and potency of medicines they were already taking and the adequacy of pain management.

18 Aug 2010

Holotranscobalamin protein may be key to early detection of cognitive decline

B vitamins-B-6, B-12 and folate-all nourish the brain. But much remains to be discovered about the relation between these essential nutrients and our brainpower.

18 Aug 2010

NIH awards Brain Plasticity $3.65M to improve cognitive function in people with schizophrenia

Brain Plasticity Inc., a new technology incubator dedicated to the discovery and development of novel technologies that harness the basic principles of brain plasticity to improve the lives of people with neurological and psychiatric disorders, was recently awarded $3.65 million dollars in two separate grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

18 Aug 2010

Brain stimulation may improve thinking in people with schizophrenia

Mild electrical stimulation to the brain could improve thinking and reduce auditory hallucinations in people with schizophrenia and schizo-affective disorder, researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) have found.

17 Aug 2010

Air quality along US Gulf Coast improves after stoppage of oil leak

The oil spill along the United States Gulf Coast poses health risks to volunteers, fishermen, clean-up workers and members of coastal communities, according to a new commentary by UCSF researchers who spent time in the region and are among the first to look into health problems caused by the oil spill. The good news, the authors say, is that one of the risk factors, coastal air quality, is improving now that the oil leak has been stopped.

17 Aug 2010

Effect of Presidential election outcomes on suicide rates: Study

Change and hope were central themes to the November 2008 U.S. presidential election. A new longitudinal study published in the September issue of Social Science Quarterly analyzes suicide rates at a state level from 1981-2005 and determines that presidential election outcomes directly influence suicide rates among voters.

17 Aug 2010

Study discovers multiple effects of SSRIs on cells

A new discovery about selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) suggests that these drugs, which are used to treat mental health disorders like depression and anxiety, have multiple effects on our cells. In a research report published in the August 2010 issue of GENETICS, researchers used yeast cells to identify secondary drug targets or pathways affected by SSRIs. Such secondary pathways could help explain why different people taking the same drug may experience different effects, and could also lead to new types of drugs altogether.

17 Aug 2010

Natick VNA offers checklist to help patients make informed choice of home health care provider

Home from the hospital already? As stays for hospital patients grow progressively shorter, even for procedures as serious as repairing a brain aneurysm or inserting a pacemaker, patients' need for highly skilled nursing care at home is growing. Indeed, every week, thousands of these patients are referred to home health care services.

17 Aug 2010

Depressive Cognition Scale questions can detect cognitive symptoms of early depression

A diagnostic test of eight short questions designed by Jaclene Zauszniewski from the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University can be used to detect depressive thinking patterns that lead to clinical depression in women who care for an adult family member with a serious mental illness.

17 Aug 2010

Antidepressant alleviates depression in peri- and postmenopausal women: Study

An antidepressant can alleviate symptoms of major depression in women experiencing or about to experience menopause, according to a study released today led by a Virginia Commonwealth University researcher.

17 Aug 2010

Doctors online

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard's plans for e-health mean that physicians will be able to diagnose patients using webcams over the internet under a hi-tech health policy. Ms Gillard launched her futuristic health plans in Brisbane yesterday. Under this $392 million health plan, families with home computers will be able to get access to an after hours online doctor using webcams and internet messaging services such as Skype from July 2012. Services would improve once the Government rolls out its high-speed national broadband network.

16 Aug 2010

Cortex second-quarter net loss decreases to $0.04 per share

Cortex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. reported a net loss applicable to common stock of approximately $2,454,000, or $0.04 per share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2010, compared with a net loss applicable to common stock of approximately $2,778,000, or $0.06 per share, for the corresponding prior year period.

16 Aug 2010

Medforma unveils new Internet-based wellness platform

Nearly 80 percent of health care costs are spent on treating preventable diseases. And most of this burden falls on employers and employees. To help employers reduce these expenses while improving the health of their workforces, St. Paul-based Medforma Inc., today unveiled the next-generation of its Internet-based wellness platform called Health Portrait™.

16 Aug 2010

Recent research on schizophrenia published in journal Current Directions in Psychological Science

It has been nearly a century since the term "schizophrenia" was first used to describe what was then considered a hopeless and incurable disorder of thought and emotion. Schizophrenia is still baffling to both scientists and the general public, but it is no longer considered hopeless. Significant advances have been made on several fronts in fathoming and combating this debilitating mental illness-from genetics to neuroscience to the psychosocial aspects of the disorder.

16 Aug 2010

Johns Hopkins Professor develops ‘CAPABLE’ study to identify solutions on health challenges

In Baltimore City, dozens of older adults are now aging safely in their homes, thanks to the work of Assistant Professor Sarah L. Szanton, PhD, CRNP, at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.

16 Aug 2010