Clinical Psychiatry News articles from October 2008

Clinical Psychiatry News archives from October 2008

Nortriptyline may aid ECT efficacy.(News)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- When given concurrently with electroconvulsive therapy, nortriptyline seems to increase the treatment's efficacy and moderate its cognitive side effects, although the drug has no effect on posttreatment relapse rates, study results...

Vital signs.
October 1, 2008... Retail Drug Prescriptions Filled at Pharmacies in 2007 (per capita) Note: Data are generated by Verispan, which collects data from a panel of retail pharmacies, third-party payers, and data providers. Source: Kaiser Family...

Illicit drug use dips among youth and young adults: baby boomers' rates more than double.(News)
October 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- The rate of illicit drug use among adolescents and young adults stayed relatively the same in 2007, showing mild decreases in use for many drugs, according to the results of the 2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. ...

Pediatric schizophrenia findings consistent.(News)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... The atypical antipsychotics risperidone and olanzapine were no more effective than was an older antipsychotic--molindone--in the treatment of pediatric patients with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder, results of an 8-week, federally...

Marked neurocognitive deficits apparent in early-onset psychotic disorders.(News)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Although their symptoms appear to improve within the first 2 years of diagnosis, girls and boys with early-onset psychoses show significant delays in neurocognitive development, and boys also exhibit changes in brain volume over...

Sustained rise in youth suicide sparks call for data.(News)
October 1, 2008... The suicide rate among children and adolescents continues to climb after a decade of decline, an analysis shows. The rate of suicide among youth aged 10-19 years was significantly greater in 2004 and 2005 than was expected, based on trends...

Suicide risk 15 times higher for PTSD patients: survey of 36,000 French citizens supports psychotraumatism screening in psychiatric evals.(News)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- The risk of attempting suicide increases by up to 15 times for patients with posttraumatic stress disorder, compared with those in the general population, a national French mental health survey has found. Although the survey...

Election 2008; Physicians' perspectives.(Election 2008)
October 1, 2008... Obama: Build on Current System, Focus on Prevention As doctors, you know well what ails our health care system. Are there any among us who have not cared for a patient without health insurance? Who hasn't noticed that the cost of care has...

Let's make mental health a global priority.(GUEST EDITORIAL)
October 1, 2008... Nearly 12% of the world's population will experience a mental illness within any given year that would benefit from diagnosis and treatment, according to the World Federation for Mental Health's report for 2008. The kinds of shortages of...

Aren't we already 'qualitists?'.(LETTERS)(Letter to the editor)
October 1, 2008... After a good start in challenging conflict of interest for psychiatrists who receive large speaker and consultative fees from the pharmaceutical industry, Dr. H. Steven Moffic suggests as the remedy the creation of a new specialty in psychiatry...

Let's reward good behavior.(LETTERS)(Letter to the editor)
October 1, 2008... Cases of inhumane behavior on the part of physicians and other health care providers, as described by Dr. Paul J. Fink, have been known for decades ("Physicians were distressed to learn of the psychiatric patient who died while waiting to be...

Complexities in psychiatry.(LETTERS)(Letter to the editor)
October 1, 2008... I read Dr. Paul J. Fink's recent column about the study showing a reduction in the use of psychotherapy in the care of patients by psychiatrists ("Is psychiatry in danger of losing psychotherapy as a tool," September 2008, p. 22), and I want to...

Editorial advisory board.
October 1, 2008... LEE H. BEECHER, M.D., University of Minnesota, Minneapolis CARL C. BELL, M.D., University of Illinois at Chicago DANIEL E. CASEY, M.D., Oregon Health and Science University, Portland PAUL J. FINK, M.D., Temple University,...

Antidepressants may extend need for hypnotics.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Antidepressant use seems to potentiate the need for concomitant hypnotic medications for extended periods, despite national recommendations that the sleeping aids be prescribed for no more than 4 consecutive weeks, a large study in...

Intervention cuts STI rates among black women.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... MEXICO CITY -- African American women who receive an intervention that includes a package of safer-sex options have a large reduction in the incidence of sexually transmitted infections relative to peers who receive general health promotion,...

Right unilateral placement in ECT endorsed.(Adult Psychiatry)(electroconvulsive therapy )(Report)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Right unilateral electroconvulsive therapy with ultrabrief stimulation is just as effective as traditional bilateral brief pulse therapy, but avoids the often long-lived cognitive deficits associated with the traditional method....

Brain abnormalities appear heritable in OCD.(Adult Psychiatry)(obsessive-compulsive disorder)(Report)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and their unaffected first-degree relatives share a lack of cognitive flexibility and impairments in the ability to inhibit their motor response to cognitive stimuli--changes that appear...

Rapid HIV testing of homeless vets beneficial.(Adult Psychiatry)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... MEXICO CITY -- Rapid HIV testing among homeless veterans is feasible, acceptable, and effective in ensuring that they learn their HIV status, the findings of a randomized study conducted in Los Angeles shelters show. "Current estimates are...

Asenapine may ease schizophrenia symptoms.(Adult Psychiatry)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... PHOENIX -- Six weeks of treatment for acute exacerbation of schizophrenia using the experimental atypical antipsychotic drug asenapine significantly reduced symptoms, compared with placebo therapy, in a randomized, double-blind study of 458...

Author Allan Peterkin encourages therapists to 'prepare a list of books and articles that explore themes relevant to your patient's exploration.' Is Dr. Peterkin's advice useful?(FINK! STILL AT LARGE)
October 1, 2008... Dr. Allan Peterkin's recommendation, suggested in his book "The Psychiatrist's Little Book of Wisdom" (Royal Oak, Mich.: Physicians' Press, 1999), seems excessive and challenging. Such recommendations are not a routine part of my repertoire...

Better physician education urged on metabolic disorders.(Adult Psychiatry)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- More than 20% of patients taking antipsychotic medications for schizophrenia were at risk for diabetes, more than 30% had undiagnosed hyper-lipidemia, and more than 50% had undiagnosed hypertension, a large European epidemiologic...

Deep brain stimulation lifts severe depression; Technique may suppress activation of brain region that malfunctions in cases of resistant disease.(Adult Psychiatry)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Deep brain stimulation of the subcallosal cingulate gyrus significantly improved the symptoms of treatment-resistant depression, both by suppressing activation of that area and remotely activating other brain regions involved in...

Metabolic syndrome common with clozapine.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Metabolic syndrome was present in 61% of patients with schizophrenia who took clozapine, a Dutch observational study has shown. Women and those taking concomitant mood stabilizers had the highest risk, Dr. Pauline Steylen...

For early PTSD treatment, cognitive therapies better than escitalopram.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- When given within a month of the precipitating event, cognitive therapy and prolonged exposure therapy are equally effective at decreasing the incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder--and both strategies are significantly more...

Balance efficacy, safety in bipolar depression.(PRACTICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY)
October 1, 2008... The popularity of lamotrigine took a hit this year when the results of five randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials showed that it had no efficacy as monotherapy in primary measures of acute bipolar depression (Bipolar Disord....

Sildenafil reduces adverse sexual effects of sris in women.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... Sildenafil reduces the adverse sexual effects related to treatment with serotonin reuptake inhibitors in women who had major depression in remission, a recent report shows. "These findings are important not only because women experience...

Paliperidone ER eases mania, depression.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Extended-release paliperidone significantly reduced acute symptoms of mania and depression, compared with placebo, with the difference emerging as early as the second day of treatment in a large, international study. The drug,...

Do [beta]-blockers cause depression?(EVIDENCE-BASED PSYCHIATRIC MEDICINE)
October 1, 2008... The Problem You are a psychiatrist working in a correctional setting. One of your inmate patients has a history of depression and experiences symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder, including tremor and awareness of increasing heart...

Data offer insight into postpartum depression.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... Postpartum depression affected 12%-20% of mothers surveyed in the most recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). These proportions are somewhat higher than the...

Meta-analysis: long-term therapy is effective.(Adult Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... Long-term psychodynamic psychotherapy is effective for patients with complex mental disorders, a meta-analysis of 23 studies shows. In what the authors described as the first-ever meta-analysis of the outcomes of long-term psychodynamic...

Quetiapine bests paroxetine in bipolar trial.(Adult Psychiatry)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Quetiapine monotherapy edged out paroxetine monotherapy in a randomized placebo-controlled trial of patients with bipolar disorder. By 8 weeks, quetiapine (Seroquel)--both 300 and 600 mg/day--reduced mean depression scores...

Rebooting the brain for assertiveness.(THE PSYCHIATRIST'S TOOLBOX)
October 1, 2008... Last month, I spelled out specific methodology and behavioral therapies aimed at dealing with an anxiety ridden disorder ("Systematic Desensitization in 10 Steps," September 2008, p. 23). However, anxiety disorders are not the only problems...

CBT cited as only proven treatment for trauma.(Child/Adolescent Psychiatry)(cognitive-behavioral therapy)(Report)
October 1, 2008... Only cognitive-behavioral therapy, of all the major interventions being used to reduce psychological harm in children and adolescents who have witnessed or been victims of trauma or violence, has strong evidence to show it is effective,...

Acetaminophen use linked to later asthma development.(Child/Adolescent Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... Exposure to acetaminophen might be an important risk factor for the development of asthma later in childhood, according to new data from an international asthma study. In a sample of more than 200,000 children from 31 countries, those...

Gene variation may flag risk for early-onset depression.(Child/Adolescent Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Patients with childhood-onset depression who have a variant in the gene that codes for brain-derived neurotrophic factor also show unique variations in their electroencephalograms, opening the door to a possible screening tool for...

Insulin tied to decreased brain plaques in AD.(Geriatric Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... Chicago--A postmortem analysis of subjects with both Alzheimer's disease and diabetes found up to 80% fewer amyloid beta plaques in the brains of those who took both insulin and oral diabetic medication while alive. The finding might shed...

Experimental drug that targets tau may aid memory in dementia.(Geriatric Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- An experimental drug designed to attack neurofibrillary tau tangles significantly improved some measures of memory among patients with mild cognitive impairment, although it failed to meet its primary cognitive end point. ...

Investigational antibody may dissolve plaques.(Geriatric Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... Chicago--An investigational monoclonal antibody may dissolve amyloid brain plaques in patients with Alzheimer's disease, although patients receiving the vaccine did not show any signs of improved cognition during a 12-week randomized,...

Type of drink is more critical than number.(Addiction Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... BALTIMORE -- Drinking clear liquors-such as vodka and gin--and drinking more than one type of alcoholic beverage are both associated with an increased risk of having a hangover among college students, even after controlling for the number of...

Comorbid mental disorders predict chronic medical illness.(Addiction Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Chronic medical conditions are very common among patients with co-occurring schizophrenia and alcohol use disorder. In one study of 80 patients, 83% of the patients had at least one chronic illness. The most common chronic...

Pregabalin matches naltrexone in lowering alcohol craving.(Addiction Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... BARCELONA -- Pregabalin reduced alcohol craving scores just as effectively as did naltrexone and was associated with a longer period of alcohol abstinence, especially in patients with a co-morbid psychiatric disorder, according to the first...

Drinking behavior assessed among hispanics.(Addiction Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... WASHINGTON -- Drinking behavior varies considerably across Hispanic national groups, with Puerto Rican men, Mexican men, and Puerto Rican women at the greatest risk for binge drinking. In a study of more than 5,000 Hispanics, Mexican...

Expectations lowered for disulfiram.(Addiction Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... VIENNA -- Disulfiram has a far more truncated role in the treatment of cocaine dependence than once envisioned, Frank J. Vocci, Ph.D., said at the annual congress of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology. When the first signals...

Efavirenz may have edge for advanced HIV.(Community Psychiatry)
October 1, 2008... MEXICO CITY -- Efavirenz twice daily is at least as effective as once-daily lopinavir/ritonavir, and likely more so, when it used as part of highly active anti-retroviral therapy for untreated advanced HIV infection. "In developing...

Preventing post-rape psychopathology.(Prevention in Action)
October 1, 2008... Nearly 18 million women in America--about 1 out of every 6--has been the victim of either an attempted or a completed rape in their lifetime, according to the Justice Department's National Violence .Against Women Survey. For many women,...

Rasagiline delays symptoms in early Parkinson's.(Neuropsychiatric Medicine)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... MADRID -- Rasagiline may have a disease-modifying effect for patients with Parkinson's, delaying the progression of symptoms early in the disease at least in the short term, a new placebo-controlled trial has found. The study was designed...

Selegiline reduces some adverse events in Parkinson's.(Neuropsychiatric Medicine)
October 1, 2008... CHICAGO -- In a group of patients with motor fluctuations and dopamine agonist-related side effects, adding orally disintegrating selegiline and decreasing the dopamine agonist dose reduced these adverse events without worsening Parkinson's...

Try tailored psychotherapy for fibromyalgia.(Pain Medicine)
October 1, 2008... PARIS -- Success rates for nonpharmacologic therapy in patients with fibromyalgia are climbing to previously unattainable levels by tailoring psychotherapy in accord with patient characteristics. It is best to intervene before the physical...

TMS shows efficacy for treating migraine with aura.(Pain Medicine)
October 1, 2008... BOSTON -- Transcranial magnetic stimulation may be a promising new weapon in the pain relief arsenal of patients with chronic migraine with aura, findings of a clinical trial show. Brain stimulation with magnetic pulses, delivered via a...

Best Tx unclear for disordered eating in type 1.(Psychosomatic Medicine)
October 1, 2008... KEYSTONE, COLO. -- Identifying adolescent type 1 diabetes patients with eating disorders is a lot easier than figuring out how to help them, according to several experts. "It's a very difficult problem to treat, and none of us knows...

Factors help predict eating disorders in diabetes.(Psychosomatic Medicine)(Clinical report)
October 1, 2008... KEYSTONE, COLO. -- Significant predictors of the onset of disturbed eating behavior within the next several years in girls with type 1 diabetes include concerns with weight and shape, a higher body mass index, depressive symptoms, and poor...

'Fever phobia' still exists in many communities.(Across Specialties)(Report)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... HONOLULU -- Ethnic differences surround parental perceptions and actions concerning childhood fever, according to two North American studies presented at the annual meeting of the Pediatric Academic Societies. Both studies found evidence...

Fish oil may cut heart failure mortality, morbidity.(Across Specialties)
October 1, 2008... MUNICH -- Supplementation with a single daily low-dose fish oil capsule in patients with chronic heart failure resulted in modest but clinically meaningful reductions in mortality and cardiovascular hospitalization in a nearly 7,000-patient...

Swedish study shows that heart failure is no longer deadlier than most cancers.(Across Specialties)
October 1, 2008... MUNICH -- Five-year survival of patients with heart failure has been dire, worse than for many cancers. But therapeutic advances in the last 2 decades mean that today, for the first time, that's no longer true, according to a large Swedish...

Women smokers lose twice as many years of good health as men.(Across Specialties)
October 1, 2008... MUNICH -- Women who smoke tend to have their first acute MI considerably earlier in life than do male smokers. This observation in a Norwegian case-control study suggests that smoking increases the risk of cardiovascular disease to a...

Adiposity trumps BMI as predictor of stroke.(Across Specialties)
October 1, 2008... Measures of abdominal adiposity appear to be better predictors of . stroke or transient ischemic attack than does body mass index, based on a German study of more than 1,100 individuals. "Three different statistical approaches uniformly...

Disaster response Dialogue.(FYI)
October 1, 2008... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has released a report of a roundtable meeting among members of the disaster response community, including mental health consumers, policy makers, and providers. The facilitated...

Community- and Faith-Based Services.(FYI)
October 1, 2008... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has released a new toolkit, "Sustaining Grassroots Community-Based Programs: A Toolkit for Community- and Faith-Based Service Providers." The kit contains six booklets that cover...

Drug approved for Parkinson's.(FYI)
October 1, 2008... Requip XL (ropirinole extended release tablets) have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of the signs and symptoms of idiopathic Parkinson's disease. It is the first and only oral once-daily non-ergot dopamine...

Substance use relapse.(FYI)
October 1, 2008... The Drug and Alcohol Services Information System has released a report titled, "First-Time and Repeat Admissions Aged 18 to 25 to Substance Abuse Treatment: 2006." The report is based on substance abuse treatment admissions from the Treatment...

Substance Abuse brochure in Spanish.(FYI)(http://download.ncadi.samhsa.gov/pre-vline/pdfs/SMA08-4320.pdf)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has released a Spanish version of its brochure, 'Alcohol and Drug Treatment: How It Works, and How It Can Help You." The brochure describes what can be gained through substance abuse...

Alcohol-Only Treatment Admissions.(FYI)
October 1, 2008... The Drug and Alcohol Services Information System has released a report titled "Frequency of Use Among Alcohol-Only Treatment Admissions: 2006." The report focuses on the 394,000 alcohol-only treatment admissions in the Treatment Episode Data...

Avoiding antipsychotic polypharmacy.(INPATIENT PRACTICE)(Interview)
October 1, 2008... Some psychiatrists who work on inpatient units are concerned about the practice of discharging patients who are on multiple antipsychotics. The Joint Commission tried to provide guidance on this issue through its measure on hospital-based...

Commission in transition.(Practice Trends)
October 1, 2008... The Joint Commission, which provides the standard in hospital accreditation in the United States, will soon be subjected to greater federal oversight. Congress has eliminated the Joint Commission's "unique deeming authority" for hospitals...

Report backs standardizing criteria for diversion across hospitals.(Practice Trends)(Report)
October 1, 2008... Standardizing criteria across hospitals could help reduce the practice of ambulance diversion, as could reductions in emergency department boarding and increased coverage of uninsured patients, a new report suggests. Currently, hospitals...

Physician groups protest timeline for ICD-10 switch.(Chronology)
October 1, 2008... Officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services plan to replace the ICD-9-CM diagnosis and procedure code set with a significantly expanded set of codes--the ICD-10--by Oct. 1, 2011. Physician groups, however, are calling the...

Psychologists OK anti-torture policy.(POLICY & PRACTICE)(Brief article)
October 1, 2008... The American Psychological Association's membership has approved a resolution to prohibit psychologists from participating in interrogations. Once the policy becomes official at the APA's next annual meeting in August 2009, members will be...

Teva loses risperidone exclusivity.(POLICY & PRACTICE)
October 1, 2008... Earlier this year, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries became the first company to sell generic risperidone, leading it to revise its sales and earnings estimates greatly upwards. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has...

Media influences tobacco use.(POLICY & PRACTICE)
October 1, 2008... Media communications--including movies, advertising, and news--play a key role in shaping tobacco use, according to a lengthy report from the National Cancer Institute. The report noted that cigarettes are among the most heavily marketed...

Tobacco control support drops.(POLICY & PRACTICE)
October 1, 2008... Budgets for tobacco control programs in most states are either staying level or declining despite increases in payments from the 1997 Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement, which was designed to compensate states for some of the cost of...

CSPI tries to dampen sparks.(POLICY & PRACTICE)
October 1, 2008... The Center for Science in the Public Interest has sued MillerCoors LLC to have its Sparks caffeinated alcoholic beverage taken off the market. In a suit filed in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, the group said that at 6%-7%...

Pfizer touts its drug safety site.(POLICY & PRACTICE)
October 1, 2008... Pfizer has launched a drug safety Web site for patients and physicians that is accessible through the company's home page, www.pfizer.com. It provides very basic information--in an interactive format complete with videos--on risk and on the...

Grants to MDs in Hurricanes.(POLICY & PRACTICE)
October 1, 2008... The American Medical Association Foundation's Health Care Recovery Fund will provide grants of up to $2,500 to physicians in places that have been declared disaster areas by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the foundation currently...

How much are we worth?(The Ethical Way)
October 1, 2008... The headline was "Doctors Disagree on Fees and Ethics," and I'd hasten to guess that no one reading this column now is likely to have read the article on ethics that day. After all, the article was published in the Nov. 19,1915, edition of the...