Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Medication adherence reduces recidivism in bipolar juvenile offenders Journal of Clinical Psychiatry news item at Psychiatry Matters - " Juvenile offenders with bipolar disorder who adhere to their antimanic medication are less likely than those who do not to offend again, study findings suggest. 'We wished to determine if mood-disordered serious juvenile offenders, who were stabilized on medication in a correctional setting, would maintain their gains upon return to their community and whether success or failure would be related to medication compliance,' Larry Dailey (Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA) and colleagues explain. The researchers reviewed the probation records of 31 adolescents released during a 1-year period between 1993 and 1994 from a county juvenile corrections treatment facility. All the participants had DSM-III-R bipolar disorder and were stabilized on medication..."  
  

Confronting trauma directly most effective for post-traumatic stress disorder News-Medical.Net story - "For patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, psychological treatments that address the trauma directly are better than more general therapies, according to a systematic review of the subject. The treatment approach known as trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy shows 'a strong positive effect,' the study says. In this type of program, therapists address the distressing thoughts and feelings related to the trauma and help the survivor cope with unpleasant memories and reactions. The analysis suggests that stress-management therapies may also be effective. Limited evidence supports the value of anxiety-management techniques such as relaxation and deep breathing. Least successful are nonfocused treatments such as straightforward counseling or 'psychodynamic' therapies that emphasize the emotional conflicts caused by the traumatic event, particularly as they relate to childhood experiences."