Almost half of all schizophrenics consume narcotics, nicotine, or alcohol. The reason for this addiction could be the very treatments these patients are undergoing, according to a new preclinical study published in Neuropsychopharmacology. “The secondary effects of antipsychotic drugs are numerous and invasive: facial tics, apathy, depression, weight gain, etc.,” says Anne-Marie Bédard, a Université de Mont ...

Despite their high use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), Americans over the age of 50 often do not discuss CAM use with their health care providers, a survey indicates. The results, from AARP and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health were released today. Check the end of this report for a link to download the original study ...

The drug laquinimod reduced the number of relapses for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) in a large, long-term Phase III clinical study that will be presented as late-breaking research at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in Honolulu, Hawaii. ...

The use of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) to treat tics in Tourette syndrome may be as effective as and even superior to medication in certain cases. According to a new study published in a special edition of the International Journal of Cognitive Therapy by researchers from the Fernand-Seguin Research Centre of the Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital affiliated with Université de Montréal, it was observed tha ...

In a breakthrough that may aid treatment of learning impairments, strokes, tinnitus and chronic pain, UT Dallas researchers have found that brain nerve stimulation accelerates learning in laboratory tests. Another major finding of the study, published in the April 14 issue of Neuron, involves the positive changes detected after stimulation and learning were complete. ...

A new drug called perampanel appears to significantly reduce seizures in people with hard-to-control epilepsy, according to results of the first clinical trial to test the higher 12 mg dose of the drug. The late-breaking research will be presented at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in Honolulu, Hawaii. ...

Treating high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and other vascular risk factors may help lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in people who already show signs of declining thinking skills or memory problems. The research is published in the April 13, 2011, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. ...

Results of the first randomized, placebo-controlled long-term clinical trial show the investigational drug safinamide may reduce dyskinesia or involuntary movements in mid-to-late stage Parkinson’s disease. The findings will be presented as late-breaking research at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in Honolulu, Hawaii. ...

In the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics data are presented by S. Priebe and collaborators (London, UK) that point to the importance of the therapeutic relationship in psychotic disorders. Numerous studies have shown that the quality of the therapeutic relationship between the patient and the clinician is an important predictor of the outcome of different forms of psychotherapy. ...

In recent years supplementation with Vitamin D has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in people who are deficient in the vitamin. Now new research from the Georgia Prevention Institute at Georgia Health Sciences University in Augusta indicates that supplementation with the "sunshine vitamin" may be particularly beneficial for overweight African-American adults, a population at inc ...