Early intensive behavioural intervention (EIBI) involves 20-40 hours of individualised instruction each week for children with autism. The therapy usually begins at age 4 or younger and continues for 2-3 years. The technique was pioneered by Dr. Ivar Lovaas and colleagues in the 1970s. A new systematic review from the Cochrane Developmental, Psychosocial and Learning Problems [read the full story…]
Have you ever tried to compare the results of different clinical trials only to find that different outcome measures have been used in each and often in each study more than one outcome measure is reported. This is a common problem for systematic reviewers. When faced with more than one outcome measure which should be [read the full story…]
There is an increasing body of research that suggests that inflammation plays an important role in the development of schizophrenia. It is therefore logical to consider using anti-inflammatory drugs as a component within the overall treatment approach for people with schizophrenia. This new systematic review and meta-analysis carried out by researchers from the University Medical [read the full story…]
As MSK elves we already know shoulder pain is one of the most common presenting musculoskeletal conditions accounting for between 7 -26% of general practitioner consultations in the UK. There are a variety of causes of shoulder pain and some of our previous blogs have discussed challenges to developing an acurate diagnosis. Once we have our appropriately [read the full story…]
There has been a lot of discussion over recent years about the ways in which genetic testing may help make the treatment of depression become more targeted and effective. The theory is that genetic markers may help predict how different people are likely to respond to different drugs. This is clearly something that would interest [read the full story…]
There is a great deal of interest in using information and communication technology (ICT) to support and treat people with mental health conditions. In the broadest sense, ICT includes not just computers, but also telephones, TV and radio; essentially any medium that can communicate information in a multimedia format. ICT interventions can be delivered at [read the full story…]
The excellent Time to Change initiative is quick to point out that people with mental health problems are more likely to be the victims of violence than the perpetrators. However, it remains the case that certain mental health conditions are more frequently associated with antisocial behaviour and violence than others. Personality disorders (PD) are one [read the full story…]
I really enjoyed the discussion in the Guardian over the weekend about poor quality trials and pharmaceutical industry techniques that overhype their drugs in an attempt to shift units. Ben Goldacre’s new Bad Pharma book is well worth a read. New reviews about antidepressants come thick and fast and it’s often hard to know what [read the full story…]
To date, ecstasy use has been very much associated with young people and clubbing, but some research has shown that the environments in which it is taken is now beginning to broaden. Lifetime prevalence rates for the drug are around 10% in the US and 8.6% in the UK according to 2010 EMCDDA estimates. The [read the full story…]
Over the last few years, we have seen more and more children and young people being prescribed antipsychotic drugs. The theory behind this increase is that the newer antipsychotic drugs have fewer side effects than the older typical antipsychotics. However, some small and relatively short duration studies have shown that the newer drugs may also [read the full story…]
