Mental Health News and Research

Latest Mental Health News and Research

Two non-pharmacological interventions reduce depression after heart surgery

Two non-pharmacological interventions-cognitive behavior therapy and supportive stress management-appear more effective than usual care for treating depression after coronary artery bypass surgery, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

6 Apr 2009

California HIV/AIDS group launches web-based program aimed at MSM

The Palm Springs, Calif.-based Desert AIDS Project has launched an Internet-based education and prevention program aimed at men who have sex with men, the Desert Sun reports. The program was launched ahead of the area's White Party Easter weekend, according to the Sun.

6 Apr 2009

Brain scan-assisted diagnosis for post-traumatic stress disorder a step closer to reality

Florence, Italy: Preliminary research examining the difference in brain activity between soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder and those without it moves scientists a step closer to the possibility of being able one day to use brain scans to help diagnose the condition.

6 Apr 2009

55 proteins found to interact with nicotine

Nicotine isn't just addictive. It may also interfere with dozens of cellular interactions in the body, new Brown University research suggests.

6 Apr 2009

Maternal personality traits affects child's eating habits

Mothers with many negative thoughts and feelings are more likely to give their children unhealthy food.

6 Apr 2009

More large employers offer chronic disease management programs to reduce health care costs

Eighty percent of large U.S. companies this year are offering chronic disease management programs for workers in an effort to reduce health care costs, up from 51% last year, according to a new survey by Hewitt Associates, the Houston Chronicle reports.

5 Apr 2009

Most psychiatrists who wrote clinical guidelines had financial ties to drug companies, study shows

Most of the psychiatrists on the American Psychiatric Association panels who wrote the newest clinical guidelines for how to treat depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia had financial ties to drug companies, according to a study by Boston researchers scheduled to be published this month in the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, the Boston Globe reports.

5 Apr 2009

How men and women cope differently with stress traced to genetic differences

Can people's differing reactions to situations of stress be attributed at least in part to genetic differences and do those differences affect men and women in different ways - with the edge seemingly favoring the women? Research conducted at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem would seem to indicate that the answer to both questions is yes.

5 Apr 2009

Schizophrenia could be caused by faulty signalling in the brain

In the biggest study of its kind, scientists looking in detail at brain samples donated by people with the condition have identified 49 genes that work differently in the brains of schizophrenia patients compared to controls.

2 Apr 2009

Compassion fatigue: Impact on healthcare providers of caring for the terminally ill

Compassion fatigue in nurses, doctors and other front line cancer-care providers significantly impacts how they interact with patients, with patient families, with other healthcare workers, and with their own family, according to analysis by Indiana University School of Medicine and Regenstrief Institute researchers published in the March issue of the Journal of Health Psychology.

1 Apr 2009

Insomnia and short sleep combination a risk factor for hypertension

A study in the April 1 issue of the journal SLEEP is the first to demonstrate that chronic insomnia with objectively measured short sleep time is an independent and clinically significant risk factor for hypertension.

1 Apr 2009

CeNeRx BioPharma awarded patent for novel compounds that selectively target peripheral cannabinoid receptors

CeNeRx BioPharma, Inc. has announced issuance of a new U.S. patent covering its novel compounds that selectively target peripheral cannabinoid receptors.

1 Apr 2009

Babies born to stressed or depressed mothers more likely to have sleep issues

A study in the April 1 issue of the journal SLEEP suggests that babies are more likely to have night wakings at both 6 months and 12 months of age if they are born to women who suffered from anxiety or depression prior to the pregnancy.

1 Apr 2009

Activation of the prefrontal cortex improves working memory

Psychologists and neurologists invest considerable effort in the study of working memory.

1 Apr 2009

Addressing sleep problems could reduce the risk of suicidal behaviours

In a study presented at the World Psychiatric Association international congress "Treatments in Psychiatry," scientists found that the more types of sleep disturbances people had, the more likely they were to have thoughts of killing themselves, engage in planning a suicidal act or make a suicide attempt.

1 Apr 2009

Need for more African American HIV/AIDS researchers

African Americans, who make up 13 percent of the U.S. population, are disproportionately affected by AIDS, accounting for nearly 49 percent of newly diagnosed HIV/AIDS cases nationwide.

1 Apr 2009

New insights into how brain responds to viral infection

Scientists at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health have discovered that astrocytes, supportive cells in the brain that are not derived from an immune cell lineage, respond to a molecule that mimics a viral infection using cellular machinery similar to that used by classical immune cells in the blood.

1 Apr 2009

Providing housing and support services for homeless alcoholics reduces costs to taxpayers

Providing housing and support services for homeless alcoholics costs taxpayers less than leaving them on the street, where taxpayer money goes towards police and emergency health care.

1 Apr 2009

Expert available to discuss consumption of products containing pistachios

Dr. Steven M. Marcus, executive director of the New Jersey Poison Information & Education System (NJPIES) at UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School is available to provide comment on the Federal Food and Drug Administration warning issued today on the consumption of products containing pistachios.

1 Apr 2009

District Court decision received in Concerta patent sase

The U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware has rendered a decision in the patent litigation between Alza Corporation, McNeil-PPC, Inc. and Andrx Pharmaceuticals LLC. McNeil Pediatrics, Division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which markets Concerta (methylphenidate HCI) Extended-Release Tablets CII, said the court held that the patent in suit is not valid or infringed by the filing of Andrx's Abbreviated New Drug Application.

1 Apr 2009