Feature Channels: Mental Health

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Research suggests feedback loop between greater executive function and healthy behavior

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Research shows adults with diabetes are disproportionately prone to depression and the risk to be significantly greater for women than it is for men. A NYU study establishes various depression predictors among adult women of diverse ages, races, and ethnicities. The results enable the targeting of especially vulnerable women for screening and depression treatment, recognizing that the female-specific characteristics are not the same as those combinations of characteristics identified in mixed populations with diabetes.

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The researchers discovered an important ‘on’ button in DIXDC1 protein that instructs brain cells to form mature connections called synapses with other brain cells during development.

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According to a recent study published in JAMA Neurology, Northwestern Medicine scientists have examined more than a century of data of the genetic makeup of ataxias, a neurodegenerative disorder, to better understand the different forms of this devastating disease and how it affects patients. This research has the potential for scientists to have a better understanding on how to diagnose and treat the disease, which has no known cure for patients suffering from the condition.

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As the world moves toward universal health coverage, the question arises: How can governments ensure equitable access to essential medicines in low- and middle-income countries? A section of The Lancet Commission on Essential Medicines Policies report, released today, finds that funding for a “basket” of these essential medicines may pose a challenge, but not necessarily an insurmountable one, for the global health community.

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Scientists from Children's Health Research Institute, a program of Lawson Health Research Institute, and Western University have developed a new blood test that identifies with greater than 90 per cent certainty whether or not an adolescent athlete has suffered a concussion.

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Researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine have identified several new biological markers to measure the progression of the inherited neurodegenerative disorder Huntington’s disease. Their findings, which will be published online November 7 ahead of issue in The Journal of Experimental Medicine, could benefit clinical trials that test new treatments for the disease.

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UAB launches study to see if family caregivers for dementia patients can benefit and improve quality of life from learning strategies to alter care-resistant behavior, such as refusal to take a bath, take medicine, accept routine mouth care, abstain from alcohol or go to a medical appointment.

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For millennia, philosophers have struggled to define human consciousness. Now, a team of researchers led by neurologists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has pinpointed the regions of the brain that may play a role maintaining it. Their findings, which have already garnered multiple awards from the American Academy of Neurology, were published today in that society’s journal, Neurology.

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Researchers found that rodents that had been exposed to stress had a weakened alcohol-induced dopamine response and voluntarily drank more alcohol compared to controls. The blunted dopamine signaling to ethanol arose due to changes in the circuitry in the ventral tegmental area, the heart of the brain's reward system.

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Researchers provide unprecedented evidence that basal forebrain pathology precedes and predicts both entorhinal pathology and memory impairment in people with Alzheimer's disease.

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Results of a cellular therapy clinical trial for traumatic brain injury (TBI) using a patient’s own stem cells showed that the therapy appears to dampen the body’s neuroinflammatory response to trauma and preserve brain tissue, according to researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

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Researchers at Binghamton University, led by PhD student Anastacia Kudinova, aimed to examine whether physiological reactivity to emotional stimuli, assessed via pupil dilation, served as a biological marker of risk for depression recurrence among individuals who are known to be at a higher risk due to having previous history of depression. Participants were 57 women with a history of major depressive disorder (MDD). The researchers recorded the change in pupil dilation in response to angry, happy, sad and neutral faces. The team found that women’s pupillary reactivity to negative (sad or angry faces) but not positive stimuli prospectively predicted MDD recurrence.

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Dementia with Lewy bodies is a progressive disease that causes hallucinations, decline in mental abilities, rigid muscles, slow movement and tremors. With symptoms similar to Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease, a correct diagnosis can be difficult.

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MINNEAPOLIS – A lack of shrinkage in the area of the brain responsible for memory may be a sign that people with thinking and memory problems may go on to develop dementia with Lewy bodies rather than Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study published in the November 2, 2016, online issue of Neurology®, a medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Shrinkage in this hippocampus area of the brain is an early sign of Alzheimer’s disease.

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While schizophrenia is best known for episodes of psychosis – a break with reality during which an individual may experience delusions and hallucinations – it is also marked by chronic neurocognitive deficits, such as problems with memory and attention. A multi-site cognition study led by psychologists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) found that these neurocognitive symptoms are evident prior to the onset of psychosis in a high-risk stage of the disorder called the prodromal phase. The findings suggest that these impairments may serve as early warning signs of schizophrenia, as well as potential targets for intervention that could mitigate the onset of the psychotic disorder and significantly improve cognitive function.

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Scientists at The University of Texas at Austin can now map what happens neurologically when new information influences a person to change his or her mind, a finding that offers more insight into the mechanics of learning.

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A collaboration of 32 researchers in seven countries, led by scientists at Mayo Clinic’s campus in Florida, has found a genetic mutation they say confers a risk for development of Parkinson’s disease earlier than usual.

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Using war metaphors in reference to Alzheimer’s disease should be replaced with messages of resilience against a complex, age-associated condition that may not be fully defeatable, according to a team of researchers.

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Researchers have developed a chemical compound that detects the Alzheimer’s protein amyloid beta better than current FDA-approved agents. The compound potentially could be used in brain scans to identify the signs of Alzheimer’s early, or to monitor response to treatment.

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The 2016 Pardes Humanitarian Prize in Mental Health was presented to Dr. Vikram Patel of India, and Dr. Charles F. Reynolds, III of the United States at the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation International Awards Dinner, on Friday, October 28, at The Pierre in Manhattan.

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UCLA Health experts are available to discuss a wide variety of topics of interest for the month of November.

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As published in JNCCN, a recent project out of Canada shows that programs identifying stress and distress in patients with cancer increase health care professionals’ confidence and awareness of patient-centeredness; outcomes are influenced by site-based navigators and practice size.

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In a study in the journal Development, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers report preclinical findings showing promise for targeting a gene linked to microcephaly in infants as a treatment for medulloblastoma.

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To improve access to quality health care for adults with IDD and to support the physician specialty of adult developmental medicine, UofL and the Lee Specialty Clinic are sponsoring the second annual Caring for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Conference Nov. 12 at UofL.

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A study in the American Journal of Critical Care found that patients with both fatigue and depression were hospitalized more than those without either condition. They also had more visits to the emergency department and longer lengths of stay.

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The brain’s interpretation of sound is influenced by cues from other senses, explaining more precisely how we interpret what we hear at a particular moment, according to a report published in Nature Neuroscience online Oct. 31.

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A Cardiff University study has found that children using screen-based media devices at bedtime have over double the risk of inadequate sleep duration compared to children without access to such a device.

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Serious mental illness such as depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia has been shown to affect relationships and parenting capabilities. Children of parents with serious mental illness are vulnerable, and therefore comprehensive knowledge about their life circumstances is warranted for public health strategies to provide helpful supportive services. A study published in the November 2016 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (JAACAP) found that the living arrangements of children whose parents have a serious mental illness differ from the general population.

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The latest research and features in the fields of psychology and psychiatry.

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During their first year, clinicians at the new Montefiore Einstein Center for the Aging Brain (CAB) saw significant improvements in their ability to identify patients with dementia symptoms and more quickly identify signs of depression and anxiety. This first year data has been published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. The Center’s model, which follows a three-step evaluation and management plan from clinicians in Geriatrics, Neuropsychology and Neurology, examines referred patients for evaluation of cognitive complaints based on daily activities, demographic information, additional medical conditions, and medication review.

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The distinct structures of toxic protein aggregates that form in degenerating brains determine which type of dementia will occur, which regions of brain will be affected, and how quickly the disease will spread, according to a study from the Peter O’Donnell Jr. Brain Institute.

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Babies crunching leaves in their hands, children creating costumes with their parents, and families picking pumpkins at the local pumpkin patch -- it doesn't have to be cheap or include witches and werewolves for parents to spend time with their children and help aid in their psychological and social development

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Men can take birth control shots to prevent pregnancy in their female partners, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

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The number of people diagnosed with depression at psychiatric hospitals increases immediately after the transition from daylight saving time to standard time -- this is the conclusion of a recent register-based study from Denmark.

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The Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) announced today the relaunch of CognitiveVitality.org, its brain health and dementia prevention website. The streamlined, easy-to-navigate site separates fact from fiction and empowers people to make smarter choices for their brain health.

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Loyola University Chicago Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing faculty Diana Hackbarth, PhD, RN, FAAN, and Fran Vlasses, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, ANEF, FAAN, have been awarded a $928,000 grant over two years from the Health Resources and Services Administration to integrate behavioral health providers into nurse-led primary care teams.

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Epidural anesthesia may do more than relieve pain during labor; in some women it may decrease the likelihood of postpartum depression, suggests a preliminary study presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2016 annual meeting.

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Studying brain tissue from deceased donors, Johns Hopkins scientists have found common groups of genes disrupted among people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression. The commonly affected genes sets, identified with RNA sequencing methods, engage in making proteins, controlling brain cell communications and mounting an immune system response, the researchers say.

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Discussing the importance of addressing the emotional needs of all family members involved upon the announcement of a new addition to the family.

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A Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey researcher has received a $596,250 award (W81XWH-16-1-0358) from the U.S. Department of Defense to study the role of chronic stress in breast cancer development. The focus of the work is to explore how chronic stress impacts breast cancer risk and to provide a foundation that can guide prevention strategies.

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Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease is an untreatable inherited disorder that leads to loss of motor neurons and paralysis. Now, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Stanford University have designed compounds to correct the molecular dysfunction underlying the disease.

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Carlozzi is the lead author of four new papers which present the results of her National Institutes of Health-funded study to develop new patient-reported outcome measures for Huntington’s disease.

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Those living in more advantaged neighborhoods are less likely to have a stroke than are their counterparts who live in less advantaged neighborhoods, according to a UAB study.

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A key strategy missing from the ambitious Alzheimer’s disease plan signed into law by President Obama six years ago could send investigational drugs down a precarious pipeline, argue two physicians.

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Given the relatively short lifespans of many pets, it’s not unusual for children to witness the realities of life played out in their homes. Research by Canisius College professor Joshua J. Russell, PhD, focuses on how children understand death in these moments, and the ideas, feelings and responses they have when their pets die.

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STEM CELLS Translational Medicine published the work of San Antonio scientists aiming to develop a more effective method for delivering neural stem cells to the brain in an effort to move forward stem cell therapies to treat neurological disorders.