Study: Are insomnia medications effective for children?
By Ami Albernaz
Despite uncertainty about the safety and efficacy of insomnia medication for children, a new survey finds that child psychiatrists endorse using medication in at least one-quarter of their patients. The study’s authors are recommending the clinical trials be used to learn how effective sleep medications are for children, what the optimal doses are and how the drugs affect mood and daytime functioning. The findings, reported in the August issue of Sleep Medicine, are based on responses from nearly 1,300 members of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Insomnia is a significant clinical issue among many school-aged child and [More]
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Study: Belief in God aids treatment
By Jo Kadlecek
Belief in God or a higher power might not be on the list of prescribed treatments for depression or anxiety but a recent study concludes it can improve outcomes for psychiatric patients. Published this past spring in the Journal of Affective Disorders, the study – entitled “A test of faith in God and treatment: The relationship of belief in God to psychiatric treatment outcome” – surveyed 159 patients over the course of a year at Harvard Medical School affiliate McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass. and explored the impact faith had on treatment expectations. Led by David H. Rosmarin, Ph.D., a [More]
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Study: Campus rape reaches ‘epidemic levels’
By Janine Weisman
During their first year of college, nearly one in seven women had been the victim of at least one sexual assault characterized by excessive alcohol or drug use and nearly one in 10 women will have experienced forcible assault or rape, according to a study led by a Brown University psychologist. The study led by Kate Carey, Ph.D., professor of behavioral and social sciences in Brown’s School of Public Health and its Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, proclaimed rape on college campuses to be at “epidemic levels.” The findings emerged from responses to a 2010 survey of 483 female [More]
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Study: Cyber bullying on the rise
By Susan Gonsalves
While school bullying has decreased in recent years, incidents of cyber bullying are on the rise, especially among girls, according to the Metrowest Adolescent Health Survey. Data analyzed more than 16,000 students in grades 9 to 12 attending 17 metrowest Boston high schools. The surveys, conducted every other year, spanned 2006 to 2012. Trends were measured by sex, grade and sexual orientation, said lead author Shari Kessel Schneider, Ms.Ph., project director and senior researcher at the Education Development Center in Waltham, Mass. Among the findings: Cyber bullying increased from 15 percent to 21 percent overall; while the hike for girls [More]
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Study: Drug does not reduce PTSD severity
By Pamela Berard
A recent study showed that a widely-prescribed medication within the Department of Veterans Affairs used in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder did not reduce overall PTSD severity Risperidone (Risperdal) is the second most widely prescribed second-generation antipsychotic within the VA for PTSD. Two serotonin reuptake inhibitors have FDA approval for the treatment of PTSD, but they appear to be less effective in men than women and less effective in chronic PTSD than acute PTSD, according to the study. Second-generation antipsychotics like Risperidone (which is not approved by the FDA to treat PTSD) are commonly prescribed as an add-on treatment [More]
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Study: Facebook makes you feel bad
By Janine Weisman
Nearly 1.3 billion daily active Facebook users around the world spend an average of 50 minutes each day using the social media network or one of its apps, according to the company. But they might be using Facebook at the risk of their own health and happiness. A recent study documented a negative association between Facebook use and overall well-being in contrast to the positive impact of in-person interactions. A pair of authors found that liking the content of others and clicking links significantly predicted later self-reports of diminished physical and mental health and life satisfaction. “If I go out [More]
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Study: Ketamine holds promise for PTSD treatment
By Janine Weisman
A fast acting anesthetic approved more than 40 years ago for American soldiers during the Vietnam War may hold the key to better treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in the 21st century. Ketamine has already shown effectiveness in lifting symptoms of deep depression. Researchers at the Yale School of Medicine, the VA Connecticut Healthcare System, Mount Sinai School of Medicine and other research institutions are pursuing more studies to learn more about how ketamine can work within hours to alleviate symptoms “I don’t think any drug is a miracle drug, but I think that ketamine has produced some very [More]
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Study: Kids with ADHD treated with drugs
By Rivkela Brodsky
Nationally it appears most children are being treated for ADHD by medication alone, according to a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Medication treatment was the single most common treatment with about 43 percent of children receiving medication alone,” said Susanna Visser, DrPH, lead epidemiologist of child development studies at the CDC and lead author on the study. “That was followed with combination therapies at 31 percent.” The study was the first national study by the CDC examining the use of behavioral therapy and supplements alongside medication to treat ADHD during 2009 and 2010 in children [More]
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Study: Lying with the truth is risky
By Janine Weisman
During the Sept. 26, 2016, presidential debate, Donald Trump responded to a question about a 1973 federal lawsuit charging his family’s company with housing discrimination this way: “We settled the suit with zero – no admission of guilt. It was very easy to do. But they sued many people.” The U.S. Justice Department had charged Trump, his father and their company, Trump Management Inc., with violating the Fair Housing Act for refusing to rent to African-Americans. A New York Times story on the case reported there was no evidence that Trump personally set rental policies, but consent decrees customarily don’t [More]
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Study: Manual changes could result in false-negative diagnoses
By Pamela Berard
Researchers at Rhode Island Hospital determined that recommended changes in the upcoming revision to the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, fifth edition” (DSM-5) could result in false-negative diagnoses. In a paper published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, the researchers examined the impact of deleting five personality disorders in the new DSM-5 – paranoid, schizoid, histrionic, narcissistic and dependent personality disorders. The deletions were among recommendations made by the DSM-5 Personality and Personality Disorders work group and were being looked at as a way to reduce the level of comorbidity among the disorders. (The work group has since decided to retain [More]
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