Postpartum haemorrhages are serious birth complications that represent one of the leading causes of maternal mortality and morbidity. While incidences of postpartum haemorrhages have risen steadily in the past decades (in the US alone, numbers increased from 2.3% to 2.9% from 1994 to 2006), there is little evidence as to why. Antidepressants – especially selective [read the full story…]
Hospitals are supposed to make people better, not worse – so hospital-acquired infections are always a big topic. Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) is the most commonly diagnosed cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea, and causes more than 7,000 deaths each year in the US alone. There have been studies into risk factors for CDI, one of them [read the full story…]
In June this year The World Health Organisation (WHO) published a report, which highlighted violence against women as a ‘global health problem of epidemic proportions’. The report detailed the impact of violence on the physical and mental health of women and girls. This can range from broken bones to pregnancy-related complications, mental problems and impaired [read the full story…]
The harmful impact of depression extends far beyond the individual sufferer to caregivers, friends and family members. Children of people with depression are more likely to suffer from depression themselves. This may be due to both inherited and environmental factors. This new randomised controlled trial (RCT), published earlier this week in JAMA Psychiatry, set out [read the full story…]
The question of what role nutrition plays in mental health has been the sauce (ahem) of research interest in recent times. As covered previously by oursElves in relation to dementia, the majority of this research has looked at individual nutrients like Omega-3 fish oil and other minerals, with the broader area of diet receiving less [read the full story…]
A cohort study published in JAMA tried to answer the question what are the risk factors for suicide in the US military. This is a hot topic as the rate of suicide has increased in US military personnel from about 11/100,000 people in 2005 to about 18/100,000 so that now deaths from suicide outnumber deaths [read the full story…]
While most people would likely associate tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) with more common adverse effects such as dry mouth, sedation and constipation, there is some evidence to suggest increased occurrence of bone fractures (Vestergaard, Rejnmark, & Mosekilde, 2006). However, the topic remains controversial and conflicting results about the association of TCAs and fracture risk abound (e.g. [read the full story…]
Individuals with severe mental illness (SMI) have shortened life expectancies compared to the general population. This is partly down to higher rates of chronic physical illness. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death among patients using mental health services. It is assumed that interventions used to reduce CVD are similarly effective in patients with [read the full story…]
People with bipolar disorder are found to be at greater risk of suicide compared to the general population. Clinicians should be more vigilant for signs of suicidality in this patient group. Suicide, the taking of one’s own life, sadly is the cause of death for around 5,500 people in the United Kingdom each year. In [read the full story…]
Bipolar disorder is considered a hereditary condition. There is emerging evidence that prodromes/early symptoms are evident in children before disorders develop. This potentially offers a chance to treat and prevent the development of mental health problems in adulthood. Being able to identifying early symptoms of the onset of this mental health disorder is clearly important, however, [read the full story…]
