Tuesday, December 17, 2002

Brain Scans May Detect Early Signs of Psychosis
Reuters story at Yahoo based on research published in The Lancet - "Brain imaging may help doctors determine if people who are at high risk of developing psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia will go on to experience a break with reality, researchers said Tuesday. Sophisticated scanning techniques may be able to detect changes in areas of the brain that occur before or while a severe mental disorder is developing..."  
  

'Fear gene' could unlock mental illness
BBC story, based on research at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute regarding the discovery of a gene in mice that plays a role in learning to be afraid - and could "provide clues to the origins of severe mental illness."  
  

Is There A Common Genetic Link For Depression And Cardiovascular Disease?
Molecular Psychiatry article at InteliHealth on the large body of evidence that has emerged over several years for an association between depressive disorder and cardiovascular disease - and "recent support for the assumption that the relation between both disorders may be bi-directional."  
  

Team Treatment Helps Elderly Depression
AP story at InteliHealth - "Elderly patients suffering from depression fared better when there was a team approach to their care, a study suggests. Researchers found patients had fewer symptoms and greater quality of life when specially trained case managers worked with primary care doctors to help develop treatment plans."  
  

Psychiatrists 'driven by fear' (UK)
BBC story on research appearing in the Postgraduate Medical Journal on "so-called defensive medicine" - "Fear of being sued or pilloried in the media is forcing many psychiatrists to take the safe treatment option - even if it is not necessarily the best for the patient."