Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Psychiatry for November 2007. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
Social Comparison Important in Brain's Reward Processing
FRIDAY, Nov. 30 (HealthDay News) -- Receiving a larger monetary reward compared to a peer is associated with increased activity in the ventral striatum of the brain seen on functional MRI (fMRI), providing evidence for the importance of social comparison in reward processing, according to an article published in the Nov. 23 issue of Science.
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Progesterone, Estrogen Show Promise in Alzheimer's Study
THURSDAY, Nov. 29 (HealthDay News) -- Estrogen and progesterone, taken together or separately, may cut the risk of Alzheimer's disease in postmenopausal women, according to the results of a study in mice published in the Nov. 28 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.
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Treating Depression Lowers Mortality in Diabetics
TUESDAY, Nov. 27 (HealthDay News) -- Mortality rates are lower among older adults with diabetes and depression if they are treated for their mental illness, according to study findings published in the December issue of Diabetes Care.
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Depression Linked to Low Bone Mass in Younger Women
MONDAY, Nov. 26 (HealthDay News) -- In premenopausal women, the presence of major depressive disorder may be associated with lower bone mineral density, according to a report published in the Nov. 26 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
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Fatigue, Headaches Common at 11 Weeks After Childbirth
MONDAY, Nov. 26 (HealthDay News) -- Eleven weeks after giving birth, new mothers still had an average of 4.1 childbirth-related symptoms, most often fatigue, according to a prospective cohort study published in the November/December issue of the Annals of Family Medicine.
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Breast Cancer Pain Worse Among Non-White Women
MONDAY, Nov. 26 (HealthDay News) -- Non-white women experience more severe pain from breast cancer than white women, and pain interferes more with their daily activities, according to a report published online Nov. 26 in the journal Cancer.
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Babies Identify and Prefer Helpful People
THURSDAY, Nov. 22 (HealthDay News) -- At 6 and 10 months old, babies are able to evaluate whether or not a person's actions towards others are helpful, and express a preference for helpful people, according to a letter published online Nov. 21 in Nature.
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FDA Warns About Potential Concerns with Chantix
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 21 (HealthDay News) -- Due to reports of suicidal ideation and other concerns in patients who have taken Chantix (varenicline), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is urging health care providers to monitor behavior and mood changes in patients taking the smoking cessation medication.
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PTSD Symptoms Strongly Associated with Asthma
THURSDAY, Nov. 15 (HealthDay News) -- In men, symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder are independently associated with an increased risk of asthma, according to the results of a twin study published in the Nov. 15 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
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Race and Ethnicity Impact Survival in Alzheimer's Disease
THURSDAY, Nov. 15 (HealthDay News) -- African American and Latino patients appear to survive longer than white patients following a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, according to research published online Nov. 14 in Neurology.
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Depression-Heart Disease Link with Inflammation Explored
TUESDAY, Nov. 13 (HealthDay News) -- Women with depression are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease but inflammatory biomarkers only account for a small proportion of the risk, according to a report published in the Nov. 20 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
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Propensity for Anxiety Predicts Sleep Disturbance Onset
MONDAY, Nov. 12 (HealthDay News) -- People with a propensity for anxiety are at especially high risk of sleep disturbances during the six months after experiencing a negative life event, researchers report in the November issue of Sleep.
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Model Proposes to Explain Schizophrenia Symptoms
MONDAY, Nov. 12 (HealthDay News) -- A computational model proposes an important role for receptors for the neurotransmitters NMDA and GABA in explaining the symptoms of schizophrenia, researchers report in the November issue of PLoS Computational Biology.
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Antidepressant Benefits in Teens Studied
MONDAY, Nov. 12 (HealthDay News) -- Two studies on the use of medications to combat tobacco use, substance abuse, conduct disorders and depression in adolescents show benefit but results are mixed. Both studies appear in the November issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
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Prenatal Alcohol Use Linked to Problems in Children
FRIDAY, Nov. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Children of mothers who drink alcohol while pregnant are more likely to have various problems than those of non-drinking moms, but the cause may be maternal abuse of many substances, including alcohol, researchers report in the November issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.
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Intervention Program Reduces Postnatal Depression
FRIDAY, Nov. 9 (HealthDay News) -- A multi-component intervention may significantly benefit depressed, low-income mothers with newborn children who live in resource-poor countries, according to a report published in the Nov. 10 issue of The Lancet.
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Violent TV Shows Promote Childhood Aggression
FRIDAY, Nov. 9 (HealthDay News) -- Preschool boys who are exposed to violent television programming may be more likely to engage in aggressive behavior later in childhood than boys who are not exposed to such programming, according to a report published in the November issue of Pediatrics.
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Parental Mental Illness Linked to Sudden Infant Death
THURSDAY, Nov. 8 (HealthDay News) -- The risk of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, is elevated in infants with one or both parents who have been admitted for psychiatric treatment, according to study findings published in the November issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.
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Non-Maternal Care Can Reduce Aggression in At-Risk Kids
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 7 (HealthDay News) -- Non-maternal care services can lower the risk of chronic physical aggression problems in children of mothers with low education levels, even though such risks are higher than for other children, researchers report in the November issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.
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Teens Who Smoke Cannabis But Not Tobacco Fare Better
TUESDAY, Nov. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Adolescents who use cannabis but not tobacco are generally better adjusted than those who use both substances, and screening for adolescent substance abuse should take place in a variety of health care settings, according to two studies published in the November issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
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Psychiatric Problems in Childhood Predict Adult Arrests
FRIDAY, Nov. 2 (HealthDay News) -- Large percentages of those who are arrested in adulthood have histories of childhood psychiatric disorders, researchers report in the November issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.
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Cognitive Therapy Reduces Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms
FRIDAY, Nov. 2 (HealthDay News) -- A comparison of two Internet-based therapy programs for military service members with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) found greater success with a cognitive therapy approach than with a supportive counseling approach, researchers report in the November issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry.
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Protein Tyrosine Nitration Blocks Morphine Tolerance
FRIDAY, Nov. 2 (HealthDay News) -- Biochemical changes that produce morphine tolerance in mice can be blocked by inhibition of NO synthesis or removal of superoxide, pointing to peroxynitrite (ONOO-) as a signaling mediator in this setting, researchers report in the November issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
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