Smoking Cessation After Diagnosis of Early-Stage Lung Cancer Improves Outcomes
General Medicine Summary and Comment
It's never too late to stop smoking.
Extended Treatment with Transdermal Nicotine Is Effective
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Abstinence from smoking was more likely with longer use of the patch.
Sudden Infant Death and Parental Psychopathology
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Hospitalization of a parent is associated with elevated risk for SIDS in this study from Sweden.
By Barbara Geller, MD
February 12, 2010
Covering:
Webb RT et al., Arch Gen Psychiatry 2010 Jan; 67:69
Opioid Prescription for Chronic Pain and Risk for Overdose and Death
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Risk is clear, but solutions are not.
By Richard Saitz, MD, MPH, FACP, FASAM
February 11, 2010
Covering:
Dunn KM et al., Ann Intern Med 2010 Jan 19; 152:85
McLellan AT and Turner BJ., Ann Intern Med 2010 Jan 19; 152:123
Opioid Prescriptions and Overdose
Emergency Medicine Summary and Comment
Risk for overdose increases with increasing daily dose prescribed.
Smoking Cessation and Risk for Type 2 Diabetes
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Excess diabetes risk in quitters is mediated partially by weight gain.
Substance Use Disorders and the Course of Bipolar Disorder
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Comorbid substance use disorder increases the risk that a depressive episode will switch to mania or hypomania, but may have few effects on recovery.
By Joel Yager, MD
January 25, 2010
Covering:
Ostacher MJ et al., Am J Psychiatry 2009 Dec 15
Delivering Medical Care to Public Mental Health Patients
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Medical case management in community mental health centers improves access and outcomes.
By Joel Yager, MD
January 25, 2010
Covering:
Druss BG et al., Am J Psychiatry 2009 Dec 15
Smoking Cessation: The Benefits of Doing Your Best
Cardiology Summary and Comment
In survivors of acute MI, quitting smoking improved mortality risk, and so did reducing the number of cigarettes smoked.
By Joel M. Gore, MD
January 20, 2010
Covering:
Gerber Y et al., J Am Coll Cardiol 2009 Dec 15/22; 54:2382
An Early Developmental Marker of Future Criminality?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Deficient fear conditioning at age 3 years may portend future criminality.
By Joel Yager, MD
January 11, 2010
Covering:
Gao Y et al., Am J Psychiatry 2009 Nov 16
Could Combining Stimulants and Antidepressants Increase Substance Abuse Risk?
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
An animal study shows that methylphenidate and an SSRI act synergistically to mimic the effects of cocaine.
By Barbara Geller, MD
January 11, 2010
Covering:
Steiner H et al., Biol Psychiatry 2009 Nov 20
2009 Year in Review
Psychiatry Letter to Readers
Free
A perspective on the most important research in the field from the past year
Reducing the Adverse Impacts of Substance Abuse
Psychiatry Year in Review
Free
Neurobiology reveals the way to new treatments, but slowly.
Suicide — New Data on Causes and Cures
Psychiatry Year in Review
Free
Careful assessment of suicidal thoughts and acts, awareness of traits associated with suicide, and vigorous treatment with medication and psychotherapy are essential for suicidal patients.
How to Reduce Medication Nonadherence in Heroin Dependence
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Long-lasting naltrexone implants reduced relapse to regular heroin use, compared with naltrexone pills.
By Steven Dubovsky, MD
November 30, 2009
Covering:
Hulse GK et al., Arch Gen Psychiatry 2009 Oct; 66:1108
When Biology Meets Personal Choices
Women's Health Summary and Comment
Risks for ischemic stroke and myocardial infarction were substantially higher in women with lupus anticoagulant who smoked or used oral contraceptives.
By Anna Wald, MD, MPH
November 12, 2009
Covering:
Urbanus RT et al., Lancet Neurol 2009 Nov; 8:998
Intranasal Naloxone Is Effective for Opioid Overdose
Emergency Medicine Summary and Comment
Time from patient contact to clinical response was the same with intranasal and intravenous naloxone.
Varenicline Use and Risk for Self-Harm and Suicide
General Medicine Summary and Comment
Patients who received varenicline, bupropion, or nicotine replacement all had similar risks.
Air Pollution and Smoking: Not-So-Distant Cousins
Cardiology Summary and Comment
Even low-level exposure to secondhand smoke and air pollution increases cardiovascular risk.
By JoAnne M. Foody, MD
October 21, 2009
Covering:
Pope CA III et al., Circulation 2009 Sep 15; 120:941
Peters A., Circulation 2009 Sep 15; 120:924
Gabapentin for Alcohol Withdrawal
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A high dose was at least as effective as lorazepam in outpatients with moderate withdrawal symptoms.
By Deborah Cowley, MD
October 19, 2009
Covering:
Myrick H et al., Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2009 Sep; 33:1582
Clinical Management of Opioid Dependence in HIV
Here we present a case vignette highlighting a common clinical problem. Various options for management are then presented, followed by the author's clinical recommendations.
By Mark Eisenberg, MD
October 5, 2009
Misuse of ADHD Meds: Epidemiologic Data
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Such misuse is becoming more common and can have severe effects, but clinicians and parents might be able to moderate these trends.
By Barbara Geller, MD
October 5, 2009
Covering:
Setlik J et al., Pediatrics 2009 Sep; 124:875
Binge Drinking in Baby Boomers — and Beyond
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
Not just the young indulge in this risky behavior.
By Joel Yager, MD
September 28, 2009
Covering:
Blazer DG and Wu L-T., Am J Psychiatry 2009 Aug 17
Combined Flumazenil and Gabapentin for Alcohol Dependence
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A promising protocol, but only for those with more-severe alcohol withdrawal symptoms
By Deborah Cowley, MD
September 21, 2009
Covering:
Anton RF et al., J Clin Psychopharmacol 2009 Aug; 29:334
Mental Health Burden of Veterans Returning from Iraq and Afghanistan
Psychiatry Summary and Comment
A large-scale study suggests that more than one third of returning veterans receive new psychiatric diagnoses.
By Joel Yager, MD
September 21, 2009
Covering:
Seal KH et al., Am J Public Health 2009 Sep; 99:1651
