One of the biggest problems facing the mental health system today is slipshod diagnoses — diagnoses made too quickly, without obtaining enough information, and checking for reasonable alternative diagnoses. Professionals sometimes complain that they are overworked and need to make a diagnosis quickly in order to be reimbursed for the interview. I say that’s rubbish […]

The latest research results on deep brain stimulation (DBS) suggests it is helpful for severe, chronic depression. DBS is a simple surgical procedure that implants electrodes in parts of your brain. Once implanted, they emit tiny electrical pulses that help block the dysfunctional activity in your brain. The key to success in the procedure is […]

Back in December 2007, the British Journal of Psychiatry published an editorial examining the use of computers to help aid people with mental health concerns. Most of these programs focus on psychoeducational techniques (sort of like distance learning) of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). One of the things that CBT is well-known for, compared to many other […]

In the mental health blogosphere this week my favourite post came from Dr. Shock, in a post that is part of the cool Research Blogging initiative. He reported on a new paper published in Cyberpsychology & Behavior called Lighting in Digital Game Worlds: Effects on Affect and Play Performance, by Igor Knez and Simon […]

There are dozens of empirically proven treatments for a wide range of mental disorders. Drugs. Psychotherapy. Self-help books and support groups. Other stuff. It all works, and it works even better when you combine it together. This isn’t so much rocket science any more as “common sense.”
So you’d think every family doctor and general physician […]

Joseph of the Corpus Callosum blog wrote a great post about a study on psychotherapy for terminally ill cancer patients with depression. Though you might assume anyone who is terminally ill would become depressed, only about 25% develop serious symptoms of depression. A meta-analysis finds that they do respond to therapy with significant improvements.
The argumentative […]

The devastating numbers released by researchers today suggest not only that approximately 1 in 5 returning U.S. soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan may have posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or a traumatic brain injury (TBI), but also that veterans often fail to seek care for these problems.
The study was conducted by the RAND Corporation and suggests […]

If you suffer from a mental disorder maybe you’d feel more at ease at home — home on the range. At least that’s what a new study out of the Norwegian University of Life Sciences supports.
To assess the benefits of Green care, the researchers asked ninety patients (59 women and 31 men) with […]

Of no particular surprise to anyone, on April 3 attorneys representing Rebecca Riley’s estate filed a lawsuit against the psychiatrist and Tufts Medical Center, where the psychiatrist practiced. Rebecca Riley, if you’ll remember, was the 4-year-old who died from an overdose of psychiatric drugs. The lawsuit was filed by a court-appointed guardian overseeing Riley’s estate, […]

Powerful antipsychotic medications have commonly been prescribed to people with Alzheimer’s disease and other serious cognitive dementias found amongst the elderly population, especially if they are in a nursing home or hospital environment. Why?

Almost all older dementia patients will experience, along with the cognitive and functional decline typical of the illness, some neuropsychiatric symptoms. These […]

It’s a cruel irony that people who have borderline personality disorder (BPD) will often have the most difficulty finding and getting proper treatment from mental health professionals. Because, unlike virtually every other mental disorder in the book, borderline personality disorder is seen as one of the worst of all disorders to try and treat. People […]

Can psychiatric disorders like depression be prevented, instead of just treated? Well, the obvious answer is also the correct one — yes.
Just like we can all do things to help prevent the spread of the flu or cold viruses in the winter (such as washing your hands regularly), there are also scientifically proven techniques that […]