What’s in a Name?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Is avoidant personality disorder just a severe form of generalized social phobia?
By Deborah Cowley, MD
April 7, 2008
Covering:
Chambless DL et al., Depress Anxiety 2008 ; 25:8
Disturbances of Glucose Metabolism in Depression
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Whole-body glucose disposal is impaired in depressed patients.
By Joel Yager, MD
April 7, 2008
Covering:
Schweiger U et al., Psychosom Med 2008 Feb/Mar; 70:170
Escitalopram, Metabolism, and Cytochrome P450 Genotype
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Patients' response to escitalopram or associated adverse effects may be due to genotype.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
April 7, 2008
Covering:
Rudberg I et al., Clin Pharmacol Ther 2008 Feb; 83:322
Venlafaxine vs. SSRIs: A Meta-Analysis
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Some superiority for venlafaxine is shown, but not a lot.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
March 24, 2008
Covering:
Nemeroff CB et al., Biol Psychiatry 2008 Feb 15; 63:424
Glucocorticoid Gene Variant Blunts the Effects of Child Abuse on PTSD
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Genetic insights into why only some people get PTSD
Depressed Residents Make Medication Errors
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Free
A study of pediatric residents links medication errors to depression, but not to burnout.
Comorbid Personality Disorder Moderates Response to Depression Treatments
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A new way of looking at how depressed patients respond to cognitive-behavioral therapy and medication
By Peter Roy-Byrne, MD
March 17, 2008
Covering:
Fournier JC et al., Br J Psychiatry 2008 Feb; 192:124
Postpartum Mental Illness: Tell Me More About Yourself, Your Family, and Your Partner
Women's Health Summary and Comment
For first-time mothers, family and partner mental health influenced the development of postpartum mental disorders.
Depression, Distress, and Stroke
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
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Psychological distress, but not major depression, increases the risk for stroke.
By Jonathan Silver, MD
March 10, 2008
Covering:
Surtees PG et al., Neurology 2008 Mar 4; 70:788
What Doesn't Work for Depression and PTSD
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Negative findings for aripiprazole and divalproex
By Peter Roy-Byrne, MD
March 10, 2008
Covering:
Thase ME et al., J Clin Psychopharmacol 2008 Feb; 28:13
Davis LL et al., J Clin Psychopharmacol 2008 Feb; 28:84
Macrolevel Stressors and Mental Health
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Clinicians should not neglect to examine the impact of the larger world.
By Joel Yager, MD
March 10, 2008
Covering:
Richman JA et al., Am J Public Health 2008 Feb; 98:323
When Are Temper Tantrums in Preschool Children Cause for Concern?
Typical tantrum characteristics in healthy preschoolers differ from those of preschoolers with depression or disruptive disorders.
Lithium’s Effect on Gray Matter
Neurology Summary and Comment
A volumetric MRI study indicates that lithium’s beneficial effects in bipolar patients may be due to an increase in gray matter.
By Jang-Ho Cha, MD, PhD
March 4, 2008
Covering:
Bearden CE et al., Biol Psychiatry 2007 Jul 1; 62:7
Chuang D-M and Manji HK., Biol Psychiatry 2007 Jul 1; 62:4
Is Psychosis Nonspecific?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Methamphetamine psychosis may share a dysbindin polymorphism with schizophrenia and psychotic bipolar disorder.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
March 3, 2008
Covering:
Kishimoto M et al., Biol Psychiatry 2008 Jan 15; 63:191
Antidepressant Choice and Psychotherapy in Treatment-Resistant Adolescents
General Medicine Summary and Comment
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Cognitive behavioral therapy adds incremental benefit to any antidepressant therapy.
Antidepressants, ART Adherence, and HIV Outcomes
In a retrospective study, treating depression seemed to attenuate, or even eliminate, the negative effects of this condition on ART adherence and HIV outcomes.
By Valerie Stone, MD, MPH
February 25, 2008
Covering:
Horberg MA et al., J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr 2007 Dec 13
Exercise and the Brain
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Free
In animals, exercise seems to enhance neuronal resilience.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
February 25, 2008
Covering:
Hunsberger JG et al., Nat Med 2007 Dec 2; 13:1476
Maternal Origins of Depression?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Anxiety during pregnancy may predispose daughters to depressive symptoms later in life.
By Peter Roy-Byrne, MD
February 15, 2008
Covering:
Van den Bergh BRH et al., Neuropsychopharmacology 2008 Feb; 33:536
What Is the Status of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Despite indications of response in this industry-sponsored study, its effectiveness remains uncertain.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
February 15, 2008
Covering:
O’Reardon JP et al., Biol Psychiatry 2007 Dec 1; 62:1208
Are "Dual-Neurotransmitter" Antidepressants Superior to SSRIs?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
This comprehensive meta-analysis suggests that the dual action drugs have a small edge, but the clinical usefulness of this statistical difference is unclear.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
February 11, 2008
Covering:
Papakostas GI et al., Biol Psychiatry 2007 Dec 1; 62:1217
Falling Through the Cracks: Can Depression Affect BMD?
Women's Health Summary and Comment
Women with MDD had lower BMD and higher pro-inflammatory cytokine levels than did women without depression.
Panic Attacks and Subsequent Cardiovascular Events
Neurology Summary and Comment
An association was found, but is the mechanism ischemic or neurogenic?
A Genetic Marker for Lithium Response
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
In a study of treatment-resistant, depressed patients, a gene that mediates neuronal survival affected response to lithium augmentation therapy.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
January 28, 2008
Covering:
Adli M et al., Biol Psychiatry 2007 Dec 1; 62:1295
Long-Term Lithium Use, the Hippocampus, and Cognition
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
In bipolar patients, lithium may increase hippocampal volume and improve cognition.
By Deborah Cowley, MD
January 18, 2008
Covering:
Yucel K et al., Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2007 Dec; 195:357
ECT May Stimulate Brain Cell Growth: An Animal Study
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A rat study shows that electroconvulsive shock induces proliferation of cells in a region of the brain associated with the processing of emotions.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
January 18, 2008
Covering:
Öngür D et al., Biol Psychiatry 2007 Sep 1; 62:505
