Most Children With Rapidly Shifting Moods Do Not Have Bipolar Disorder
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Susan, even at age 33, cannot sit still. She never could. Pegged by her teachers as the resident “problem child,” she spent most of her afternoons in detention for disrupting class and forgetting her homework assignments. As an adult, she still struggles to meet her work deadlines, and she has to fight the insatiable urge to dart out of meetings.
A simple eight-question survey administered soon after injury can help predict which of the 30 million Americans seeking hospital treatment for injuries each year may develop depression or post-traumatic stress, report Therese S. Richmond, PhD, CRNP, associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, and her colleagues in General Hospital Psychiatry.
Compared to other common psychiatric disorders, the diagnostic reliability of alcohol dependence (AD) as determined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) is relatively high. However, when members of the general public are asked to report on past experiences or lifetime history (LTH) of psychiatric or substance use disorders, associations are often unreliable and underestimated. A new study looking at the reliability of, as well as the influence of genetic and environmental influences on, DSM-IV LTH-AD in a population-based sample has found that a diagnosis based upon a single diagnostic interview is reasonably reliable. Results will be published in the September 2011 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research and are currently available at Early View.
Primary care doctors have long been on the front lines of depression treatment. Depression is listed as a diagnosis for 1 in 10 office visits and primary care doctors prescribe more than half of all antidepressants. Now doctors at the University of Michigan Health System have developed a new tool, which is called Remission Evaluation and Mood Inventory Tool, or REMIT, that may help family physicians better evaluate the extent to which a patient’s depression has improved. REMIT is in the public domain, and a link to download the REMIT is included in this report.
Not a single person identified with autism or asperger’s syndrome during a community survey in England actually knew they had the condition, research led by the University of Leicester reveals. According to Dr. Traolach Brugha, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Leicester, the research has already revealed that autism was common in males, those without higher educational qualifications, and those living in social (government financed) housing. Prevalence was not related to the age of those with the condition. The researchers made the “Interview Guide for the Diagnostic Assessment of Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)” available online. Check the end of this report for a download link.
Two related studies released by this week by Geisinger Health System researchers identify specific genetic risks associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and help identify key psychosocial predictors that may lead to PTSD. The study was led by Joseph Boscarino, Ph.D., MPH, senior investigator for the Geisinger Center for Health Research.
While children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are known to have deficits in verbal learning and recall, the specifics of these deficits remain unclear. This study compared the verbal learning and memory performance of children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) with that of children with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and found that both groups of children have difficulty with learning and memory but in different ways.
A study published in the March 2011 Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine shows that Massachusetts’ new court-ordered mental health screening and intervention program led to more children being identified as behaviorally and emotionally at risk. The program is called the Children’s Behavioral Health Initiative (CBHI). The study was led by researchers from MassGeneral Hospital for Children (MGHfC).
Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI), a widely used index for assessing adolescent drinking-related problems, was found to be effective at predicting the future alcohol dependence of teen-age drinkers, according to an Indiana University study which also found that the association was stronger for adolescent female drinkers. The results are available now online in advance of print in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. Check the end of this report for a link to download a free copy of the RAPI.
Many people want to keep driving after having a stroke, and many can do so safely. Simple tests in the office can help doctors determine who is more likely to be a safe driver after a stroke, according to research published in the February 22, 2011, print issue ofNeurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
