Feature Channels: Mental Health

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According to a national survey by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) there are an estimated 9.8 million adults aged 18 or older living with serious mental illness. Among adults, the prevalence of serious mental illness is highest in the 18 to 25 age group, yet this age group is also the least likely to receive services or counseling for mental health issues.

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Researchers, led by Kerri Boutelle, PhD, associate professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have found that obesity is a risk factor for depressive symptoms.

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Patients with chronic kidney disease who have been diagnosed with depression are twice as likely to be hospitalized, progress to long-term dialysis treatments or die within a year as those who are not depressed, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found.

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A team of Australian researchers writing in The Journal of Pain reported that psychological factors, such as pessimism about recovery and depression, are major predictors of chronic pain in trauma patients.

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Not having anyone in your life can lead you straight to the pantry.

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Psychiatrists should be included in disaster first-response teams because survivors have immediate need for help in alleviating early trauma symptoms ranging from sleeplessness to constant anxiety, says a new study of 9/11 survivors and victims’ family members published today in the Journal of Psychiatric Practice.

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Anxiety and depression do not play a role in teen motor vehicle accidents, a new study finds.

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When people are under chronic stress, they tend to smoke, drink, use drugs and overeat to help cope with stress. These behaviors trigger a biological cascade that helps prevent depression, but they also contribute to a host of physical problems that eventually contribute to early death.

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An intervention in primary care settings that allowed a choice of cognitive behavior therapy, medication, or both, along with computer-assisted treatment support for patients with common anxiety disorders, resulted in greater improvement in anxiety symptoms and functional disability compared to usual care, according to a study in the May 19 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on mental health.

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During the year following hospitalization for a traumatic brain injury, a majority of patients experienced major depression, according to a study in the May 19 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on mental health.

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It is time to reassess mental disorders, recognizing that these are disorders of brain circuits likely caused by development processes, according to a commentary in the May 19 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on mental health.

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About 10 percent of fathers experience prenatal or postpartum depression, with rates being highest in the 3 to 6 month postpartum period, according to an analysis of previous research appearing in the May 19 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on mental health.

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More than one-third of teenagers with treatment-resistant depression – many of whom had been depressed for more than two years – became symptom-free six months after switching their medication or combining a medicine switch with cognitive behavioral therapy during a multicenter study led by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers.

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A new intervention, the result of a collaboration between researchers from the University of Haifa, City University of New York and Indiana University, was found to reduce the self-stigma and improve the quality of life and self-esteem among persons with serious mental illness.

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Moderate to severely depressed clients showed greater improvement in cognitive therapy when therapists emphasized changing how they think rather than how they behave, new research has found.

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Patrick Sullivan, MD has received a 2010 Distinguished Investigator Award from NARSAD for a comparison of genetics in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. His project is one of 15 selected out of 170 proposals submitted by researchers worldwide. Each project will each receive $100,000 annually in support of one year of research.

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Nurses from New Jersey’s only NCI-Comprehensive Cancer Center have developed a multimedia education tool for reducing the amount of anxiety they experience when performing high-risk procedures that are infrequently performed. The focus of the work is the creation of audiovisual materials concerning care for patients with a hepatic arterial infusion (HAI) pump.

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By analyzing the genomes of patients with schizophrenia, genetics researchers have discovered numerous copy number variations—deletions or duplications of DNA sequences—that increase the risk of developing schizophrenia. Significantly, many of these variations occur in genes that affect signaling among brain cells.

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Adolescents living with mothers who currently smoke are nearly three times more likely to smoke than adolescents living with non-smoking mothers.

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“The View’s” Sherri Shepherd, child development pioneer Dr. T. Berry Brazelton, and expert panel join SAMHSA to celebrate fifth anniversary of National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day.

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A new research study to be conducted by Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing associate professor Nancy Glass will help women plan for their personal safety when ending an abusive relationship.

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Behavioral healthcare systems are playing a major role in responding to the needs of the millions of Americans of all ages who experience psychiatric and substance use conditions each year, according to the latest annual survey from the National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems (NAPHS).

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Daily transcranial magnetic stimulation—an intervention that uses magnetic currents to activate certain brain areas—appears to help induce remission in patients with treatment-resistant depression, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Among adults beginning antidepressant therapy, the risk of suicide or suicide attempts does not appear to vary by individual type or class of medication, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Rates of mood and anxiety disorders appear to decline with age but the conditions remain common in older adults, especially women, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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The study found that 18 percent of IBS patients surveyed reported they were currently using narcotics. These patients reported more abdominal pain, poorer health quality, more IBS-related limitations, more hospitalizations and surgeries, and that they were more likely to use antidepressants and antacid medications.

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Young adult survivors of childhood cancers are four times more likely to develop Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) than their control group siblings, a Childhood Cancer Survivors Study has found.

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New use of Stellate Ganglion Block pioneered by Chicago area doctor.

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NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital has created one of the nation's first hospitalist positions dedicated to providing mental health care for inpatients admitted for medical and surgical conditions. The position is named for Barbara Jonas, a longtime mental health advocate, former practicing psychotherapist, and supporter of arts and education. Mrs. Jonas, with her husband, Donald, gave $500,000 to honor Hospital President and CEO Dr. Herbert Pardes for his longstanding commitment to addressing mental health and behavioral issues in medicine.

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A binational team of researchers led by University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered that active syphilis infections are significantly greater in female sex workers who inject drugs and share needles than those who don’t.

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Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have found that women and men eat more chocolate as depressive symptoms increase, suggesting an association between mood and chocolate.

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Individuals who screen positive for possible depression appear to consume more chocolate than those not screening positive for depression, according to a report in the April 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Children withdraw from social activities and relationships for many reasons, including anxiety, fear of being embarrassed, or a history of negative interactions. Whatever the reason, when social anxiety or withdrawal leads to poor peer relationships, there are often other difficulties involved.

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Researchers at the Ansary Stem Cell Institute and the Department of Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College discovered that mice missing a single gene developed repetitive obsessive-compulsive-like behaviors. The genetically altered mice, which behaved much like people with a certain type of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), could help scientists design new therapies for this debilitating condition.

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How I Met Your Mother, Grey's Anatomy, Breaking Bad, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and the films Crazy Heart and The Soloist are among the productions that were recognized at the 14th Annual PRISM Awards at the Beverly Hills Hotel Thursday, April 22, 2010. The PRISM Awards, produced by the Entertainment Industries Council, Inc. (EIC) in collaboration with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and FX, honor actors, movies, music, media and television's top shows that accurately depict and bring attention to substance abuse and mental health issues.

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On Saturday, April 24, 2010, families throughout New York City will have a rare opportunity to learn about new breakthroughs and emerging treatments in mental health from some of the nation’s best and brightest mental health researchers. The NYU Child Study Center of NYU Langone Medical Center will join more than 40 other institutions nationwide to partner with NARSAD in presenting its “Healthy Minds Across America” series of public talks. Each event brings science to families seeking hope for better treatments of a broad range of mental illnesses.

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Losing a parent to suicide makes children more likely to die by suicide themselves and increases their risk of developing a range of major psychiatric disorders, according to a study led by Johns Hopkins Children’s Center that is believed to be the largest one to date on the subject.

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A new guide designed to help employers improve the delivery of child and adolescent behavioral services, and provide services for family caregivers, was officially released today by the National Business Group on Health, a national non-profit organization representing more than 280 mostly large, U.S. employers.

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Mental health activist & author Terrie M. Williams serves as Campaign Spokesperson and Co-Executive Producer of Powerful Healing PSAs featuring National Cares’ Susan L. Taylor, member of the Bloods, and A Preacher’s Daughter in web video diaries Sharing Battle with Depression.

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Black men with chronic pain are more likely to experience the downward spiral of depression, affective distress and disability than white men with chronic pain, according to University of Michigan Health System research. The persistent pain was more severe, but the study suggests other factors for worse outcomes among black men vary from their lower marriage rates - marriage tends to protect men against depression -- to engagement in litigation related to their pain.

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White House and U.S. Department of Education representatives will join addiction researchers and recovery program administrators participate in nation’s first conference promoting recovery communities on college campuses.

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An analysis of prescription and clinical claims data suggests that the use of certain anticonvulsant medications may be associated with an increased risk of suicide, attempted suicide or violent death, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.

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UCLA researchers have developed a non-invasive biomarker that may serve as a type of early warning system when antidepressants make a patient's condition worse.

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Dr. Srijan Sen, while doing his psychiatry residency at Yale University, observed how even seemingly well-adjusted interns suffered from symptoms of depression as their internships progressed. He and colleagues studied this phenomenon to see what factors played a role in depression among interns. Work hours, medical errors and even genetics are implicated.

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Genetic testing may rise to a new level with the findings of Indiana University School of Medicine researchers whose “prototype” for laboratory testing for bipolar disorder appears today in the online edition of the American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics.

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Study reveals that an estimated 44,000 adolescents a day – many with underlying respiratory conditions – put their health and lives at risk by using inhalants.

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Children exposed to violence at home or school have greater levels of anxiety and depression than children who experience brutality only in their neighborhood, say researchers in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Psychology.

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In a broad-based review of studies focused on drugs that treat anxiety, a Saint Louis University doctor found no evidence supporting the use of so-called “natural” treatments in combating the effects of anxiety.

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Findings of a pilot study about testicular cancer and writing positively about the experience. April 1-7 is Testicular Cancer Awareness Week.

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In recognition of Alcohol Awareness Month in April, communities throughout the nation are conducting town hall meetings to discuss what can be done to prevent and reduce underage drinking. This year more than 1,700 community-based organizations will conduct town hall meetings across the country – up from 1,500 in 2008, the last time this national event took place.