Wednesday, October 20, 2004

Cognitive Enhancement, Enriched Supportive Therapy Helpful in Schizophrenia
Medscape Medical News story - "Cognitive enhancement therapy is more beneficial than state-of-the-art enriched supportive therapy in reducing disability from schizophrenia, according to the results of a two-year randomized trial published in the September issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry." "emd"  
  

Prevalence and Outcomes of Pharmaceutical Industry–Sponsored Clinical Trials Involving Clozapine, Risperidone, or Olanzapine
Article in the September issue of the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry - "Since the introduction of the atypical antipsychotics into the clinical practice of psychiatry, clinical trials have increased in number, size, and of course, cost. With limited private funding available to conduct independent studies, it is not surprising that the number of clinical trials sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry continues to grow. It follows that there should also be an increase in the number of partnerships developed between the pharmaceutical industry and clinicians or academics. Although skepticism in regard to this alliance has been and continues to be expressed, the many benefits of the new reality have also been acknowledged. This study investigates the prevalence and outcomes of pharmaceutical industry–sponsored clinical trials involving the atypical antipsychotics clozapine, risperidone, and olanzapine."  
  

Cost, Stigma Are Barriers to Depression Treatment
Reuters Health story at Yahoo - "Some people with depression may refuse treatment because of the associated stigma, but the majority may go untreated simply because it is too expensive, according to the findings of an international study. ... Data from the United States and Western Europe suggest that improvements are needed in how depression is managed in the primary care setting, according to report published in the American Journal of Psychiatry. "