Psychiatry
Physical exercise: A ‘fundamental’ psychiatric intervention
June 5th, 2019 When it comes to inpatient treatment of a range of mental health and mood disorders – from anxiety and depression to schizophrenia, suicidality and acute psychotic episodes – a study suggest that physical exercise is so effective at alleviating...
Consider non-surgical brain stimulation for major depression — trials review
April 3rd, 2019 Non-surgical brain stimulation techniques, such as electro-convulsive therapy and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation, should be considered as alternative or add-on treatments for adults with major depressive episodes, concludes a study...
Clear link between anxiety and depression in 20s to memory loss in 50s
April 3rd, 2019 A large longitudinal study carried out by the University of Sussex found a clear link between episodes of depression and anxiety experienced by adults in their twenties, thirties and forties, with a decrease in memory function by the time they are...OCD symptoms reduced by targeted deep brain stimulation
Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) at two areas of the brain significantly reduced OCD symptoms, with significantly improved cognitive flexibility from one area and a greater positive effect on depressed mood from the other. These were the findings from...Nutritional supplements won't stave off depression
A daily intake of nutritional supplements was no more effective than placebo at stave off the onset of depression, the international MoodFood trial has found. Instead, regular lifestyle coaching to help people improve their diets and eating...Origins of depression are the focus of huge gene study
Scientists have pinpointed 269 genes linked to the development of depression, found an ongoing international meta-analysis drawing on data involving more than 2m people. Hundreds of genes have been newly linked to depression, shedding light on...
Psychotherapist talks about suppression of his ‘politically incorrect' research
March 6th, 2019 Psychotherapist James Caspian attempted to undertake a research project into ‘detransitioning’, where those who have transitioned to another gender come to regret their decision and try to reverse the process. Bath Spa University rejected his...
Chemical Slavery: Understanding addiction and stopping the drug epidemic
December 3rd, 2018 As the United States continues to wrestle with the heroin and opioid epidemic, no one in the country is probably more qualified to write about the issue than psychiatrist Dr Robert DuPont, an expert on addiction and anxiety. He has seen it all...
Reimagining addiction
December 3rd, 2018 Ill-informed opinion, rather than evidence, and an often misguided sense of what is moral shape attitudes to addiction and its treatment. In this fake news era it behoves addiction researchers to take evidence to the public and to governments more...Sex addiction may affect 10% of men, survey finds
Is sex addiction real? Researchers say it may be, or at least something close to it, and might be more common than anyone thought, writes Maggie Fox for NBC News. Researchers report that 1% of men and 7% of women say they have significant levels of...
UK study finds increased mental health problems facing the young
November 28th, 2018 A fifth of girls aged 17-19 and one in 10 boys the same age have self-harmed or tried to kill themselves, The Guardian reports the biggest research into young people’s mental health in the UK for 13 years has found. Experts said the figures were...Controlling sexual urges may be a greater problem than realised
The number of people in the US who have difficulty controlling sexual feelings and urges may be greater than realised, researchers say. The study found that 7% of women and more than 10% of men said they were distressed due to difficulty controlling...
Ketamine clinic boom in US triggers concerns over 'quick buck' training
October 17th, 2018 As ketamine clinics pop up across the US to offer experimental infusions for depression, anxiety, and a slew of other conditions, training programmes to teach providers how to run these businesses have also started to appear. Stat News reports that...
Researchers give official Life Esidimeni death toll
October 10th, 2018 A study has determined the official death toll of the Life Esidimeni scandal is 131. The mortality rate among 1,442 mentally ill patients transferred out of hospitals in Gauteng in a cost-saving move was eight times the national average in...
Four elite SA athletes share their stories on depression
October 10th, 2018 It seems like such a glamorous life. Travelling the world and representing your country, all global events and plush hotels. Elite athletes must have it all. But, says a Daily Maverick report, having it all means having the vulnerability of being...