BrainBlog

A press release from the FDA: FDA approves first generic Lexapro to treat depression and anxiety disorder 14 March 2012 Read the full press release

The Charlie Rose show is airing episodes from Series 2 of its "Brain Series." Series 2 is a series of episodes that deal with brain disorders. Home page

A meta-analysis of cognitive deficits in first-episode Major Depressive Disorder Journal of Affective Disorders. 2011 Nov 14; Lee RS, Hermens DF, Porter MA, Redoblado-Hodge MA Abstract BACKGROUND: Recurrent-episode Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is associated with a number of neuropsychological deficits. To date, less is known about whether these are present in the first-episode. The current aim was to systematically evaluate the literature on first-episode MDD to determine whether cognition may be a feasible target for early identification and intervention. METHODS: Electronic database searches were conducted to examine neuropsychological studies in adults (mean age greater than 18years old) with a first-episode of MDD. Effect sizes were pooled by cognitive domain. Using meta-regression techniques, demographic and clinical factors potentially influencing heterogeneity of neuropsychological outcome were also investigated. RESULTS: The 15 independent samples reviewed yielded data for ...

NCDEU is an annual conference that presents advances in treatment and in clinical trials for a number of psychiatric conditions. It is a relatively small conference with a nicely organized agenda of workshopa, presentations, and poster sessions. The website for the conference can be found here , which includes the program.

Surgery for Mental Ills Offers Hope and Risk By BENEDICT CAREY The New York Times Published: November 27, 2009 "Hundreds have undergone brain surgery for problems like depression, anxiety, even obesity." Read the article

The Short Life of a Diagnosis By SIMON BARON-COHEN, Op-Ed Contributor The New Yotk Times Published: November 10, 2009 "Asperger syndrome and autism should be thoroughly tested before being lumped together in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders." Read the Op-Ed piece

Listen to an interview with Dr. Michael Rutter on BBC Radio 4's All In The Mind programme: Click here for a link to the podcast.

BBC Radio 4 Rewriting the Psychiatrists' Bible Matthew Hill 04 August 2009 Listen to the report (40 mins.) about the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) as decisions are being reached about its forthcoming revision. Visit the show's webpage Online availability ends on the 11th of August.

From Sunday's New York Times : Daring to Think Differently About Schizophrenia By ALEX BERENSON Published: February 24, 2008 "A new drug aimed at treating schizophrenia turns its focus away from dopamine and instead on the effects of glutamate, another powerful neurotransmitter." [ ... Read the article ... ]

Hill SK, Sweeney JA, Hamer RM, Keefe RS, Perkins DO, Gu H, McEvoy JP, & Lieberman JA. Efficiency of the CATIE and BACS neuropsychological batteries in assessing cognitive effects of antipsychotic treatments in schizophrenia. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society. 2008 Mar; 14(2): 209-221. Center for Cognitive Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. Efficient and reliable assessments of cognitive treatment effects are essential for the comparative evaluation of procognitive effects of pharmacologic therapies. Yet, no studies have addressed the sensitivity and efficiency with which neurocognitive batteries evaluate cognitive abilities before and after treatment. Participants were primarily first episode schizophrenia patients who completed baseline (n = 367) and 12-week (n = 219) assessments with the BACS (Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia) and CATIE (Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effe...

Barrera A, McKenna PJ, & Berrios GE. Two new scales of formal thought disorder in schizophrenia. Psychiatry Research. 2007 Nov 6; [Epub ahead of print] Warneford Hospital, Oxford, OX3 7JX, UK. Information provided by patients and respective carers may help to understand formal thought disorder (FTD) in schizophrenia. Two scales, one for patients (FTD-patient) and one for carers (FTD-carer), were constructed to assess pragmatics, cognitive, paralinguistic, and non-verbal aspects of communication. In the first scale the patients themselves assess their verbal communication; in the second scale the carer assesses the speech of the respective patient. Both scales exhibited internal reliability and evidence of good test-retest reliability. Higher total scores on both scales (FTD-patient and FTD-carer) were significantly associated with positive FTD, but not with negative FTD. Principal component analysis of the scales yielded a multidimensional structure. It is suggested that FTD in s...

An FDA press release from yesterday: FDA Approves Risperdal for Two Psychiatric Conditions in Children and Adolescents The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Risperdal (risperidone) for the treatment of schizophrenia in adolescents, ages 13 to 17, and for the short-term treatment of manic or mixed episodes of bipolar I disorder in children and adolescents ages 10 to 17. This is the first FDA approval of an atypical antipsychotic drug to treat either disorder in these age groups. Until now, there has been no FDA-approved drug for the treatment of schizophrenia for pediatric use and only lithium is approved for the treatment of bipolar disorder in adolescents ages 12 and up. “The pediatric studies of Risperdal provided an opportunity to assess the effectiveness, proper dose, and safety of using this product in the pediatric population,” said Dianne Murphy, M.D., director of FDA’s Office of Pediatric Therapeutics. “These data have permitted the identification of the effectiv...

From the current issue of Time : When Worry Hijacks The Brain Thursday, Aug. 02, 2007 By JEFFREY KLUGER [ ... To read the article, click here ... ]

From today's New York Times Winding Through ‘Big Dreams’ Are the Threads of Our Lives By REBECCA CATHCART Published: July 3, 2007 [snip] “Back to life” or “visitation” dreams, as they are known among dream specialists and psychologists, are vivid and memorable dreams of the dead. They are a particularly potent form of what Carl Jung called “big dreams,” the emotionally vibrant ones we remember for the rest of our lives. [snip] [ ... Read the full article ... ]