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Psychiatry

News, opinions and meeting coverage in psychiatry.

If the Hairball Is a Human's, the Danger is Great

CHICAGO -- When Rush University physicians operated to remove an abdominal mass from an 18-year-old woman, no one expected to find a 4.5-kilogram trichobezoar, a rare condition, but one that can be fatal.

AHA: Some Statins May Disrupt Sleep

ORLANDO -- If patients taking simvastatin (Zocor) develop sleep disturbances, changing statins may be a good idea, researchers suggested here.

Chinese Herbs Ease Menstrual Cramps Better than NSAIDs

SYDNEY, Australia -- Traditional Chinese remedies may ease painful menstrual cramps better than nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) and other drugs, according to a Cochrane systematic review.

Virginia Tech Missed 'Clear Warnings' of Shooter's Mental Instability

RICHMOND, Va. -- The Virginia Tech massacre might have been prevented if university authorities had heeded "clear warnings of mental instability" from the shooter, found a state review panel.

One Cannabis Joint Equals Smoking Up to Five Cigarettes

WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- Smoking a single marijuana joint by a heavy user can cause bronchial damage similar to smoking 2.5 to five cigarettes, researchers reported.

AAPA: Obstructive Sleep Apnea Wearies the Heart

PHILADELPHIA -- The most obvious clinical feature of obstructive sleep apnea may be weariness of mind, but this breathing disorder also slowly and silently wears down the heart, according to researchers.

APA: Simple Screen Improves Suicide Risk Assessment

SAN DIEGO -- Emergency department patients who may be suicidal can be identified with a simple tool designed for use by health professionals without a mental health background.

APA: Co-Morbid ADHD in Bipolar Adults May Respond To Non-Stimulants

SAN DIEGO -- When attention deficit hyperactivity disorder meets bipolar disorder in an adult, the diagnosis is hard and the course is poorly understood but the co-morbidity appears to exacerbate matters, researchers said here.

APA: Abilify Has Adjunctive Antidepressant Effect

SAN DIEGO -- Aripiprazole (Abilify) may be a useful adjunctive therapy in patients with major depressive disorders who have incomplete responses to antidepressants, researchers reported here.

USPSYCH: Insomnia Treatment Boosts Antidepressant Efficacy

SAN FRANCISCO -- A significant number of patients with major depression also suffer from chronic insomnia that hampers recovery, and treating the insomnia may improve both conditions.

Overdoing Niacin Can't Thwart Drug Abuse Tests and Is Risky

PHILADELPHIA -- Those who try to foil urine drug tests with massive doses of niacin -- it doesn't work -- may wind up in a hospital emergency department.

Grief Following Death in the Family Ebbs in Six Months

NEW HAVEN -- The negative emotions of grief -- yearning, depression, and anger -- following the death of a family member from natural causes usually peak within six months, according to a Yale bereavement study of 233 mourners

Methamphetamine May Trigger Ischemic Stroke

IRVINE, Calif. -- Methamphetamine users may develop carotid artery dissections, leading to a severe stroke, an effect also seen in cocaine users, according to researchers here.

AACAP: HIV-Infection in Children Leads to More Psychiatric Symptoms

SAN DIEGO -- For a variety of factors, HIV-infected children appear to have more psychiatric problems than uninfected children, researchers reported here.

AACAP: Vitamin B12 Injections for Autism Show No Signs of Benefit

SAN DIEGO -- Preliminary results of a small ongoing study of vitamin B12 injections for children with autism showed no signs of significant benefit, researchers reported here, but they remained hopeful.

AACAP: Growth Reduction Seen Temporary for Children on ADHD Drug

SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- Strattera (atomoxetine) given to children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder does not appear to stunt growth over the long term, according to a lengthy study.

AACAP: With Anorexia, Obsessions and Compulsions Have Limits

SAN DIEGO -- Although anorexia nervosa patients commonly have obsessions and compulsions, that doesn't necessarily translate into full-blown obsessive-compulsive disorder, according to a Polish team.

Accelerated Weight Loss May Signal Imminent Dementia Onset

ST. LOUIS -- An early warning sign for Alzheimer's disease could be accelerated weight loss, found a study of aging and memory.

FDA Warns on Mixing Antidepressants with Migraine Drugs

ROCKVILLE, Md. -- Mixing common migraine drugs such as Imitrex (sumatriptan) with antidepressants like Prozac (fluoxetine) or Cymbalta (duloxetine) can trigger a life-threatening condition called serotonin-syndrome, the FDA has warned.

SLEEP: Ambien Appears to Remedy Central Sleep Apnea

SALT LAKE CITY — The sedative Ambien (zolpidem) appears to reduce the symptoms of central sleep apnea, according to a small open-label study reported here.

Blood Clots Linked to Alzheimer's and Vascular Dementias

MANCHESTER, England 芒鈧€� Spontaneous cerebral blood clots were detected at similar rates in patients with Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia, suggesting a common pathology and a potentially preventable or treatable cause for some dementias, researchers here said.

Amphetamines Hit Men Harder

BALTIMORE - Amphetamines produce a bigger bang in men than women, according to researchers here.

FDA Approves First Antidepressant Transdermal Patch

ROCKVILLE, Md. - The FDA has approved a once-a-day antidepressant patch that delivers a monoamine oxidase inhibitor. Called Emsam (selegiline), the patch can be used at its lowest dose without the dietary restrictions that accompany oral MAO inhibitors.

Epidural Steroid Injection Not Useful for Chronic Shingles Pain

UTRECHT, The Netherlands - An epidural injection of steroids with a local anesthetic did not provide the long-term pain relief doctors anticipated for patients suffering from post-herpetic neuralgia, researchers here said.

Acetaminophen Is Leading Cause of Acute Liver Failure

SEATTLE - Deliberate or inadvertent overdosing with acetaminophen (Tylenol and generics) is the leading cause of acute liver failure in the United States, researchers reported.

Antidepressant Eases Methamphetamine Addiction Symptoms

LOS ANGELES - The high and cravings of methamphetamine addicts can be reduced by the same antidepressant that helps in smoking cessation (bupropion), researchers here reported.

Lack of Hugs Can Change Children's Neurobiology

MADISON, Wis. - Children raised in the uncaring environment of some eastern European orphanages ended up with a long-lasting deficit in two hormones involved in forming social bonds, reported researchers here.

Toddlers With Sleep Apnea Should Get Off Their Backs

HOUSTON - If toddlers with sleep apnea slept less on their backs their quality of sleep and associated symptoms might improve.

Botox Helps Patients Face Intractable Facial Pain

CURITIBA, Brazil - Everyone's favorite toxin appears to offer significant relief from intractable facial nerve pain.

Suicide Risk Rises for Shorter Men

UPPSALA, Sweden-Shorter men have a twofold greater risk of suicide than taller men, according to a cohort study of more than a million men in this country.

Sleepwalking Can Be a Walk on the Wild Side

SILVER SPRING, Md.-As many as 10% of Americans somnambulate at one time or another and many of us are frequent sleepwalkers, who may end up embarrassed and sometime severely injured by our nocturnal wanderings, say sleep experts.

FDA Says It Plans Label Changes for Concerta and Ritalin

WASHINGTON-The FDA said it plans to strengthen the warning label for Concerta, the popular long-acting version of Ritalin (methylpenidate) in response to post-marketing surveillance reports of psychiatric and cardiovascular adverse effects.

FDA Warns of Excess Mortality to Elderly With Antipsychotics

WASHINGTON-The FDA has issued a public health advisory on the entire class of atypical antipsychotic drugs, pointing to an apparent excess of mortality for older patients with dementia, particularly when the agents are used off-label to treat behavioral disorders.

A Child's Death Increases Parents' Risk of Mental Illness

LOS ANGELES-When a child dies, grieving parents have an increased risk of first diagnosis of serious mental illness such as clinical depression or bipolar disorder.

St. John's Wort Better than SSRI for Moderate to Severe Depression

A study published in The British Medical Journal found that a herbal extract of St. John's wort was at least as effective as Paxil(R) (paroxetine) and had fewer side effects in patients with moderate to severe depression.

Reggie White's Death Linked to Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Preliminary reports suggest that the death on December 26th of a 43-year-old former National Football League star, Reggie White, was related to sleep apnea, a chronic condition associated with a number of lung and heart conditions.

Provigil (modafinil) Counteracts SSRI Side Effects

Provigil 脗庐 (modafinil) not only counteracted the excessive fatigue and somnolence experienced by some patients on selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), but also improved mood and quality of life in this patient group, according to a preliminary study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.