News Release

American Psychiatric Association January 2000 tipsheet

Peer-Reviewed Publication

American Psychiatric Association

Journal articles highlighted in this tipsheet are available in their entirety by calling APAfastFAX at 888-357-7924, and selecting the appropriate document number (listed below).

In the January issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry:

Patients say research gives hope

Research involving individuals with schizophrenia has become highly controversial, yet little is known about how those with mental illness view research participation. A new study from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of New Mexico, directly asked patients with schizophrenia how they felt about ethically important aspects of research with mentally ill patients; half the respondents had themselves been research subjects. The patients strongly supported such research, and many cited a sense of hope for patients as an important motivation.
[“Perspectives of Patients With Schizophrenia and Psychiatrits Regarding Ethically Important Aspects of Research Participation,” by Laura Weiss Roberts, M.D., et. al. p., 67] APAfastFAX#6941

Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors with psychotropic properties may help with Alzheimer’s

A new study released by the UCLA School of Medicine finds that acetylcholinesterase inhibitors may help control neuropsychiatric and behavioral disturbances in Alzheimer’s. These agents also may help psychiatrists and other physicians treat other disorders with cholinergic system abnormalities and neuropsychiatric symptoms.
[“Cholinesterase Inhibitors: A New Class of Psychotropic Compounds,” by Jeffrey L. Cummings, M.D., p. 4] APAfastFAX#6940

Study investigates relationship between brain signals and functions in healthy individuals

The results of a study by the State University of New York at Stony Brook and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine provide the first link between age-related declines in brain dopamine activity and frontal and cingulate metabolism, which reinforces the need to investigate treatments that enhance dopamine function in the elderly.
[“Association Between Age-Related Decline in Brain Dopamine Activity and Impairment in Frontal and Cingulate Metabolism,” by Nora D. Volkow, M.D., et. al., p. 75] APAfastFAX#6939

Research examines risk factors of depression and anxiety of elderly

A study from the Department of Psychiatry, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, reveals that although many patients have both major depressive disorder and anxiety, comparing risk factors associated with pure major depressive disorder and pure anxiety disorders revealed more differences that similarities.
[“Anxiety and Depression in Later Life: Co-Occurrence and Communality of Risk Factors,” by Aartjan T.F. Beekman, M.D., et. al., p. 89] APAfastFAX#6938

Major depression may increase bone loss in men

A preliminary study from the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, found that major depression is associated with an increase in the loss of bone mineral density, and that bone loss was greater in men than in women.
[“Lumbar Bone Mineral Density in Patients with Major Depression: Evidence of Increased Bone Loss at Follow-up,” by Ulrich Schweiger, M.D., et. al., p. 118] APAfastFAX#6937

Juvenile offenders have high rates of affective disorder

A study from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio found a prevalence of major mental disorders and substance abuse in juvenile offenders, and that further studies are needed to examine the relationship of affective disorder to substance abuse as well as to antisocial behavior.
[“Affective Disorder in Juvenile Offenders: A Preliminary Study,” by Steven R. Pliszka, M.D., et. al., p. 130] APAfastFAX#6936

In the January issue of Psychiatric Services:

Two perspectives on mental health care in America over the past 50 years, published in the January issue of Psychiatric Services, complement the recent Surgeon General’s Report on Mental Health. An editorial by editor John A. Talbott, M.D. reviews the heady times for psychiatry following the end of World War II which set the stage for powerful changes in the field made possible by new federal and state mechanisms to fund and direct shifts in care.
[“Taking Issue,” by John A. Talbott, M.D., p. 7] APAfastFAX# 6935

A review of the last half-century of mental health

Psychiatrist Jeffrey L. Geller examines the last 50 years of psychiatric services in the United States through developments and trends reported in the 50 years of publication of Psychiatric Services. This review is primarily organized around the locus of care and treatment because the location of treatment-institution versus community-has been the battleground for the ideology of care and focus of policy and legal reform. Geller concludes policymakers and practitioners are still too near-sighted on the location of care and treatment instead of on the humanness, effectiveness, and quality of care.
[“The Last Half-Century of Psychiatric Services as Reflected in Psychiatric Services,” by Jeffrey L. Geller, M.D., p. 41] APAfastFAX#6934

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