« May 2009 | Main | July 2009 »
June 14, 2009
New Foundation Radio Ad Focuses on Recession and Psychiatric Issues
The Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry, Inc. began airing a new public service announcement on local Maryland radio stations this month. It focuses on recent news reports about how the recession is affecting people and their mental health and suggests how one might get some assistance.
You can listen to the ad using the player in the upper right of the website's homepage by selecting "Recession Depression" or download the MP3 file from our radio ad page.
Posted by admin at 12:48 PM
Report calls for clinicians to pay greater attention to parental depression's impact on children
HealthDay (6/10, Thomas) reported that a report released June 10 by the "National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine calls for health and social service professionals to pay greater attention to the impact of parental depression on their children."
Instead of "treating only the depressed adult, healthcare and mental-health professionals should evaluate the fallout of the depression on the entire family, particularly children, and design treatment programs with everyone in mind." Psychiatrist and committee chair Mary Jane England, MD, of Regis College, stated, "To break the vicious circle of depression, we need to refocus our view of this illness through a broader lens that sees the whole family, not just the individual with depression."
WebMD (6/10, Hitti) pointed out that the report "estimates that in any given year, 7.5 million US parents are depressed, and at least 15 million US children live with a parent who has major or severe depression." Dr. England, who is also a past president of the American Psychiatric Association, said these estimates were conservative.
WebMD explained that "parental depression has been linked to children's early signs of, or vulnerability to, having a more 'difficult' temperament, including more negativity, less happiness, poorer social skills, more vulnerability to depression, more self blame, less self-worth, and a less effective response system to stress."
And, while "most of the research done on parental depression has focused on mothers, especially during pregnancy or when their babies are very young...parents can become depressed at any age, and depression in dads is also important." For instance, "depression saps energy, which can make it harder for patients to seek help."
Posted by admin at 12:46 PM
Neurologist takes issue with pharmaceutical advertisement claiming fibromyalgia is real
In the Mind Reader column on Salon.com (6/11), neurologist Robert Burton, MD, observed that a television advertisement in which a "kindly middle-age actress" claims that "'fibromyalgia is real' raises serious medical issues and underscores the ruthless drive of Big Pharma."
Dr. Burton asserted, "Despite strong convictions on all sides, nobody knows whether fibromyalgia is a primary medical condition, part of a larger constellation of other ill-defined conditions...or a label given to a variety of physical complaints that arise out of various mental states."
That's because "there haven't been any reproducible and clear-cut objective findings...to provide a satisfactory understanding of the disease." Because "the primary tenet of medicine is to do no harm," Dr. Burton argued that "everyone involved in the study of controversial conditions such as fibromyalgia -- physicians, researchers, pharmaceutical companies, and the FDA -- has a huge moral obligation to be sure that questionable conclusions aren't foisted on the public as the final word."
Posted by admin at 12:44 PM
FDA says three atypical antipsychotic medications may be effective in children, but carry risks
The Wall Street Journal (6/5, Dooren) reported that on June 5, staff from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that three medications "currently approved to treat bipolar disorder and schizophrenia in adults were effective at treating the disorders in children and adolescents, but carry significant risks."
On June 9-10, "an FDA panel of outside medical experts is scheduled to meet to discuss" these atypical antipsychotics, and will be "asked to vote on whether each product is safe and effective for children ages 10 to 17."
According to the agency and the pharmaceutical makers, "studies showed the products were effective at treating the symptoms of bipolar and schizophrenia," but "all had side effects," including "sedation and weight gain."
The AP (6/6, Perrone) added that the "FDA released its review of the three drugs ahead of a meeting Tuesday where outside experts will weigh in on the" medications' "risks and benefits." On Friday, "FDA reviewers said...they were wary of exposing youngsters to the" medicines' "side effects, including weight gain and high blood sugar, 'because they may be exposed for many decades.'"
In the Wall Street Journal (6/5) Health Blog, Shirley S. Wang observed, "Recent studies of effectiveness have shown that the antipsychotics aren't as good as previously believed." In an email to the Health Blog, Thomas Insel, MD, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, wrote, "They reduce some symptoms for some people, but they help too few people recover."
Dr. Insel went on to explain that "with current antipsychotics you risk either metabolic side effects or neurological side effects."
Posted by admin at 12:43 PM
CDC says 25 percent of Latina teenagers may have contemplated suicide
The Houston Chronicle /San Antonio Express-News (6/9, Stoeltje) reports that in 2007, "two million young Latinas in the United States...attempted suicide."
In fact, "Latinas age 12 to 17 make up the largest and fastest-growing minority group of girls in the nation," and "they are more at risk of trying to take their own lives than any other racial or ethnic group their age."
Figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate "25 percent of Latina teenagers have contemplated suicide and around 15 percent have attempted it, compared with 10 percent of Anglo and black teen girls who have attempted" suicide.
According to Luis Zayas, "a researcher and expert on Latino psychology who is in the middle of a five-year study of more than 150 young Latinas across the country who have attempted suicide," the combination of "cultural expectations, gender issues, ethnic identity, and adolescent-parental conflict" may "push young Latinas to the edge."
Zayas' research indicates that "often in families where Latina teens try to kill themselves, there is a high level of prolonged parental-teen conflict."
Posted by admin at 12:42 PM
Daytime naps may reduce hyperactivity, depression among toddlers
HealthDay (6/8, Preidt) reported, "For children aged four to five years, taking a nap during the day may help reduce hyperactivity, anxiety, and depression," according to a Pennsylvania State University team who presented this finding at a sleep conference.
"In the study of 62 children categorized as either napping (77 percent) or non-napping (23 percent), researchers found that those who didn't take daytime naps had higher levels of anxiety, hyperactivity, and depression." The "children who took naps did so an average of 3.4 days a week."
Posted by admin at 12:41 PM
Excessive gaming may be linked to sleeplessness among college students, research suggests
HealthDay (6/8, Reinberg) reported that University of Arkansas researchers concluded that "excessive gamers get too little sleep at night, then spend their days struggling to stay awake," but the majority of them "aren't aware of the link between the two."
Apparently, "college students, who play video games more than seven hours a week and consider themselves addicted, sleep almost two hours less a night than occasional or non-gamers."
Yet, after surveying 137 students, investigators learned that just some "11 percent said gaming interfered with their sleep, and 12.6 percent said they were addicted to gaming," percentages that did not surprise healthcare professionals.
Posted by admin at 12:41 PM
Researchers associate depression in adolescents with bedtimes
USA Today (6/9, Toppo) reports that, according to research presented at a sleep conference, adolescents "whose parents let them stay up after midnight on weeknights have a much higher chance of being depressed or suicidal than teens whose parents enforce an earlier bedtime."
For the study, researchers from the Columbia University Medical Center "examined surveys from 15,659 teens and their parents who took part in a National Institutes of Health...study of adolescent health," and found that middle- and high-school youngsters "whose parents don't require them to be in bed before midnight on school nights are 42 percent more likely to be depressed than teens whose parents require a 10 p.m. or earlier bedtime."
Notably, "teens who are allowed to stay up late are 30 percent more likely to have had suicidal thoughts in the past year." The authors said that "the lesson for parents is simple....Try as much as possible to sell teenagers on the importance of getting enough sleep."
Posted by admin at 12:39 PM
Patients who lie to their physicians may endanger their health, life
The Los Angeles Times (6/8, Ravn) reports that inaccurate information from patients "can lead to misinterpreted symptoms, overlooked warning signs, flawed diagnoses and treatments -- potentially endangering" their "health, even life."
And, although "doctors know that...at least some of their patients" lie, in doing so, these patients are "pretty much asking for trouble," according to doctors and patient advocates.
Patients may lie, however, "in order to keep something out of their medical records or out of the hands of their insurance companies." If a patient refuses "to release the records...the company can refuse to sell them a policy or refuse to pay claims." But, the insurer can also "retroactively cancel the policy" if they find "something in a patient's records that contradicts something the patient said when purchasing the policy," Jerry Flanagan, an advocate with the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, explained.
Still, "most doctors, ethicists, and patient advocates think it's a bad idea to lie to a doctor, although they all see reasons why patients might want to."
Posted by admin at 12:39 PM
NYTimes urges Obama, Congress to address shortage of mental-health professionals in military
The New York Times (6/7, WK7) editorialized that, according to Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the rate of military suicides "this year will top the record of 2008, when the Army suffered 133 suicides.
That was twice the number in 2004, before the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns turned into a slog of repeated tours."
The Times continued, "About one in five" troops "returning home privately admit to post-traumatic stress disorders, but only half seek treatment," because "soldiers fear their careers will be compromised if they reach out for help." While "Admiral Mullen offered a promising idea: mandatory early screening of all soldiers to ease any stigma," the Times asserted that "much more is needed."
Pointing out that "military suicide is the nation's problem, not just the Pentagon's," the Times urged "the Obama administration and Congress" to quickly address the "shortage of mental-health professionals in the military."
Posted by admin at 12:38 PM
FDA says three atypical antipsychotic medications may be effective in children, but carry risks
The Wall Street Journal (6/5, Dooren) reported that on June 5, staff from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that three medications "currently approved to treat bipolar disorder and schizophrenia in adults were effective at treating the disorders in children and adolescents, but carry significant risks."
On June 9-10, "an FDA panel of outside medical experts is scheduled to meet to discuss" these atypical antipsychotics, and will be "asked to vote on whether each product is safe and effective for children ages 10 to 17." According to the agency and the pharmaceutical makers, "studies showed the products were effective at treating the symptoms of bipolar and schizophrenia," but "all had side effects," including "sedation and weight gain."
The AP (6/6, Perrone) added that the "FDA released its review of the three drugs ahead of a meeting Tuesday where outside experts will weigh in on the" medications' "risks and benefits." On Friday, "FDA reviewers said...they were wary of exposing youngsters to the" medicines' "side effects, including weight gain and high blood sugar, 'because they may be exposed for many decades.'"
In the Wall Street Journal (6/5) Health Blog, Shirley S. Wang observed, "Recent studies of effectiveness have shown that the antipsychotics aren't as good as previously believed." In an email to the Health Blog, Thomas Insel, MD, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, wrote, "They reduce some symptoms for some people, but they help too few people recover." Dr. Insel went on to explain that "with current antipsychotics you risk either metabolic side effects or neurological side effects."
Posted by admin at 12:37 PM
Guidelines recommend barring athletes who may have sustained concussions from same-day return to playing field
The New York Times (6/8, D5, Schwarz) reports, "New guidelines for the care of youth athletes who sustain concussions are causing controversy among brain-injury experts."
According to "recommendations on concussion care in the May issue of The British Journal of Sports Medicine...any athlete 18 or younger who was believed to have sustained a concussion during a game or practice should never be allowed to return to the playing field the same day."
The authors, "an international panel of neurologists," concluded that having an athlete "cleared by a doctor or certified athletic trainer" is "too difficult and dangerous for same-day return to be considered safe."
Dr. Robert Cantu, an author of the guidelines, explained that "sometimes, postconcussion symptoms can be delayed for hours or even days. ... It's a clinical decision that's difficult or sometimes...near impossible to be made on the sideline." But, some physicians who "work the sidelines of high school athletic events" fear that athletes will "respond by hiding their injuries from coaches."
Posted by admin at 12:36 PM
Study indicates adults who witnessed parental violence as children may be more likely to suffer mental-health problems
HealthDay (6/4, Preidt) reported that, according to a study published online in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, "adults who witnessed parental violence while growing up are more likely to suffer mental health problems."
For the study, researchers from France's INSERM examined data on "3,023 adults in Paris," looking at "the participants' current depression, as well as their experiences with violence against children, intimate partner violence, lifetime suicide attempts, and alcohol dependence.
The participants were also asked about childhood experiences with their parents, and 16 percent said they'd witnessed violence between their parents." The team found that "people who'd been exposed to interparental violence were 1.4 times more likely to have depression, more than three times more likely to be involved in intimate partner violence, almost five times more likely to mistreat their children, and 1.75 times more likely to have alcohol dependence."
Posted by admin at 12:35 PM
Researchers associate Medicaid rules with adverse outcomes among mentally ill patients
Medscape (6/4, Kelly) reported that, according to a study published in the May issue of Psychiatric Services, "some state Medicaid requirements meant to save money are associated with more adverse outcomes among mentally ill patients and might actually be increasing mental-health costs."
Researchers from the American Psychiatric Institute for Research and Education found that "practices, such as requiring a switch to generics, placing limits on the number or dosing of medication, requiring prior authorization, and requiring use of step therapy or fail-first protocols were associated with a greater number of adverse events in patients."
They came to this conclusion after collecting data "from 857 psychiatrists in California, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas." Specifically, the team found that "patients who had problems with copayments had a nearly eight-fold greater likelihood of experiencing an adverse event," and that "all of the access problems were associated with increased emergency visits and psychiatric hospitalizations."
Posted by admin at 12:34 PM
FDA considers adding antidepressant warning to tamoxifen label
Bloomberg News (6/3, Rapaport) reports, "US regulators may warn patients taking tamoxifen, a breast cancer medicine...not to use certain types of antidepressants because they block the tumor-fighting drug's effectiveness."
According to Karen Riley, a spokeswoman for the FDA, the agency is considering "'adding new information to the tamoxifen label' to advise women taking the cancer drug against using some antidepressants."
The move follows new evidence, presented a study May 30 at the meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, that "tumors were more than twice as likely to return after two years in women taking the antidepressants while on the cancer drug, compared with those taking tamoxifen alone."
The drug works with "a liver enzyme called CYP2D6 to morph into an active tumor fighter," but "many antidepressants use the same enzyme, sapping supplies." Riley added that "the FDA may add details on CYP2D6 to the tamoxifen label."
Posted by admin at 12:33 PM
Study indicates teens whose parents have history of depression may themselves be at high risk
The New York Times (6/3, Rabin) reports that "depression often strikes during adolescence, and teenagers whose parents have a history of depression are at particularly high risk. Now," a study published June 3 in the Journal of the American Medical Association "has found that a group cognitive behavioral program that teaches coping and problem-solving skills to these high-risk teens can reduce their risk of developing the mood disorder."
Notably, "the success rate of the prevention program varied greatly, depending on the mental health status of the teenagers' parents at the time they began intervention." Specifically, "the program was much more effective than standard care if the teens' parents were also without depression when the intervention began."
Focusing on the study's methodology, USA Today (6/3, Szabo) explains that researchers from Vanderbilt University "focused on" 316 "high-risk teens whose parents had a history of depression. All...of the teens already had experienced depression in the past or had some symptoms of depression when the study began." Half of them "were randomly assigned to attend eight weekly group sessions with other teenagers. After nine months," those "who attended group therapy were less likely to have had an episode of depression than teens who had their usual care, but didn't receive therapy." However, the "prevention program didn't help at all...for teens whose parents were currently depressed."
In the Wall Street Journal (6/2) Health Blog, Shirley S. Wang observed that the study authors theorized that "having a currently depressed parent could mean that the teen had more stress to deal with, or the parent was less responsive to the teens' new skills."
HealthDay (6/2, Mozes) quoted study author Judy Garber, PhD, "director of the developmental psychopathology research training program at Vanderbilt University," as saying, "The bottom line is that depression in adolescents can be prevented among kids who are at risk." She added, "But this finding is consistent with other studies that have found that children who are in treatment for depression do not do as well if their parents are currently depressed."
She also "described the findings as 'interesting' and 'important,' in that they offer further confirmation that children of actively depressed parents are themselves at risk and should be monitored." She stated, "The message to parents is pay attention to how their children are doing if they're depressed." For "public health policy makers," however, she said that "the message is that it would be good to pay attention to prevention programs."
According to WebMD (6/2, Boyles), "cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown to be an effective treatment for depression in teens, either alone or in combination with antidepressant" medications. For example, "in a 2007 study, the combination of CBT and a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor...which is a class of antidepressant medication, was found to be more effective for treating major depression than either treatment alone." And, in a study "reported in February, the combination of CBT and an antidepressant was more effective than" medication "therapy alone in the treatment of teens who had not responded to initial" medication "treatment."
Posted by admin at 12:31 PM
Study finds average physician spends over three hours weekly dealing with insurance administration
American Medical News (6/1, Berry) reports that a study "estimates that practices' interactions with insurers cost $23.2 billion to $31 billion a year.
The average physician spends 43 minutes per work day -- more than three hours a week -- dealing with health plan administrative requirements," and "primary care physicians spent significantly more time, on average, dealing with insurers than do specialists and surgeons."
The Medical Group Management Association made recommendations to address the problem, including the adoption of "universal, standardized, swipe-card identification for patients," regulations for electronic claims payment attachments be issued by the Department of Health and Human Services, and said HHS should "issue a proposed rule for the national health plan identifier."
However, Ted Epperly, MD, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians, "said he doesn't believe insurers will make changes and standardizations voluntarily, because" they make interest off the premiums while processing claims.
Posted by admin at 12:30 PM
Study suggests certain antidepressants may interfere with effectiveness of tamoxifen
ABC World News (5/31, story 5, 1:35, Johnson) reported that many "women who are taking tamoxifen for breast cancer treatment will get hot flashes from that drug, and/or maybe be depressed because of their disease and the treatment, and so they are often put on antidepressants, including Prozac [fluoxetine] and Paxil [paroxetine]."
Studies now indicate that those medications "may interfere with the effectiveness of tamoxifen."
HealthDay (5/31, Gardner) reported that for the study, presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting, researchers examined medical records of "945 women taking tamoxifen and 353 taking tamoxifen plus an SSRI/2D6 inhibitor, most commonly Prozac and Paxil."
The study showed that "women taking both drugs had a 13.9 percent chance of their breast cancer returning over two years, vs. just 7.5 percent of those receiving tamoxifen alone," which "translates into an almost twofold increase in risk."
Posted by admin at 12:29 PM
Research suggests technology, caffeine may be linked to sleep problems in teens
HealthDay (5/28, Gordon) reported, "Just one in five teens is getting the recommended eight hours of sleep each night," according to research published in Pediatrics suggesting that "highly-caffeinated energy drinks" and technology may be to blame.
Researchers from Drexel University found that "the average sixth-grader has two [electronic] devices in the bedroom," and "by 12th grade," that number increases to four.
The investigators, including lead author Christina Calamaro, PhD, CRNP, "recruited 100 teens...to assess their technology and caffeine use, as well as their sleeping habits." The study found that "15 percent...said they only slept three to five hours per night, while 62 percent reported getting six to eight hours nightly." According to the investigators, "while sleep duration decreased, the amount of technology in adolescents' bedrooms increased."
The authors also found that just "27.5 percent of the teens drank less than 100 milligrams of caffeine daily." Participants "often got the bulk of their caffeine dose after 3 p.m., which Calamaro said could definitely disrupt sleep."
Posted by admin at 12:28 PM
Give an Hour recruiting volunteers to meet need for mental-health services for returning veterans
Medscape (5/28, Cassels) reported that at the American Psychiatric Association annual meeting, "representatives from Give an Hour, a national, nonprofit fledgling program, were on site recruiting volunteers to help meet an enormous need for mental-health services for returning veterans and their families."
Volunteers are "urgently needed to help provide free mental-health services to the vast number of troops returning from the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan." Currently, the Army is "faced with a record number of suicides, as well as the two signature wounds of the war -- mild traumatic brain injury" and "post-traumatic stress disorder."
Currently, the Give an Hour "organization has a network of 4,000 volunteers and has provided more than 13,000 hours in mental-health services from...psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and pastoral counselors." It has a goal of recruiting 40,000 mental-health professionals.
To volunteer, "individuals need to be licensed mental-health professionals and have malpractice insurance."
Posted by admin at 12:26 PM
Common threads seen as emerging among Fort Campbell suicides
According to the CBS Evening News (5/28, story 3, 2:20, Couric), to date, "11 soldiers have taken their lives already this year" at Fort Campbell, "the highest number of any US military base."
Correspondent Don Teague explained that "Fort Campbell is home to the 101st Airborne Division. Many of the soldiers have had multiple combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan." Yet, "officials say only six of the 11 suicides involved soldiers who have been in combat and only three had multiple tours."
Still, "there are some common threads emerging among the Fort Campbell suicides. Most are white men between 19 and 25 years old at the lower end of the military pay scale, and 70 percent had relationship problems."
Posted by admin at 12:25 PM
Segment highlights efforts being made to combat stress, prevent Army suicides
Following up on a previous story, ABC World News (5/28, story 7, 2:40, Gibson) reported that Thursday, May 28, "was the second day of the general stand-down at Fort Campbell, KY," as "all normal duties at the base have been suspended in order to identify soldiers at risk for suicide -- a growing problem in the Army."
Reporting from Fort Carson, CO, correspondent Bob Woodruff interviewed its commanding general, Maj. Gen. Mark Graham, who lost his youngest son Kevin, "a top ROTC cadet," to suicide. The loss "left the general devastated, but now he is turning his pain into knowledge," making Fort Carson "a testing ground to find new methods to combat stress and prevent suicide."
Soldiers "who will soon deploy to Afghanistan are" now "learning what to do when adrenaline and stress spike." They will also "deploy with a psychologist and will be met in Afghanistan by mental-health specialists." When the soldiers return home, "counselors [will] teach soldiers how to deal with the mood swings so common after combat." Gen. Graham said his "goal is to have no one die by suicide."
Posted by admin at 12:24 PM