Harvard Mental Health Letter articles from January 2009

Harvard Mental Health Letter archives from January 2009

Options for treatment-resistant depression.(Report)
January 1, 2009... Options for treatment-resistant depression Why electroconvulsive therapy may be the best alternative to medication. *Although medications and psychotherapy are usually the first treatments offered to patients with major depression,...

Benefiting from mental health parity.
January 1, 2009... Benefiting from mental health parity Determining coverage, understanding the limits, appealing decisions. *Two significant changes in health insurance coverage of mental health and substance abuse disorders, enacted into law in 2008,...

Alcohol abstinence vs. moderation.(Report)
January 1, 2009... Alcohol abstinence vs. moderation Degree of dependence predicts which strategy works best. *A debate that started in the 1960s remains an important one in the addiction field: is it possible to control problem drinking, or must the...

In brief: MRI scans reveal altered brain response to criticism in patients with social phobia.(magnetic resonance imaging)(Report)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... In brief MRI scans reveal altered brain response to criticism in patients with social phobia Generalized social phobia is the most common type of anxiety disorder. Patients with this disorder avoid social situations and are at higher...

In brief: Screening patients with heart disease for depression.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... In brief Screening patients with heart disease for depression In September 2008, the American Heart Association (AHA) recommended that clinicians routinely screen patients with heart disease for depression. Among other reasons, the...

In brief: Post-discharge counseling helps hospitalized smokers quit.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... In brief Post-discharge counseling helps hospitalized smokers quit A review of hospital-based stop-smoking programs in nine countries concluded that only the programs that continued after inpatient treatment ended enable patients to...

Commentary: Treatment that works for anxious children.(Editorial)
January 1, 2009... Commentary Treatment that works for anxious children Parents who are trying to choose the right treatment for a child diagnosed with an anxiety disorder are apprehensive (with justification) about the effects of psychotropic medication...