Dochka Hristova reports on a new Cochrane review of pharmacological interventions for self-harm in adults, which looks at the treatment effect on repetition of self-harm of antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilisers and dietary supplements.
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Farhana Mann summarises an observational study of mood instability in people with mental illness, which explores its relationship with days spent in hospital, frequency of admissions, the likelihood of being sectioned and the chance of being prescribed antipsychotics and mood stabilisers.
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Helen Bould appraises a recent meta-analysis of second-generation antipsychotics for anorexia nervosa, which finds that the drugs don’t lead to weight gain or improve eating disorder symptoms. So why are antipsychotics being used in this group of patients?
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Tracey Roberts summarises a recent paper that reviews the existing literature concerned with switching antipsychotics in patients with schizophrenia, and goes on to present the ongoing OPTiMiSE RCT in this field, which is due to be published in 2016.
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Andrew Shepherd summarises a Cochrane systematic review of treatments for delusional disorder, which finds only 1 small RCT looking at treating the condition with medication or psychotherapy compared to placebo.
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Psychotropic medications are prescribed widely to many people with learning disabilities, but there remain many concerns about over, or improper use of such medications.
Here, Kate van Dooren looks at a study which collected data from 100 participants over a period of time to look at psychotropic medication and the relationship between dose, demographic factors and aggression scores.
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Andrew Shepherd reports on a recent systematic review, meta-analysis and reappraisal of Quetiapine for schizophrenia, which concludes that Quetiapine IR has a small beneficial effect on psychotic symptoms, but also leads to weight gain and sedation.
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Clive Adams presents a summary of the latest evidence for CBTp and medication in the treatment of psychosis. This blog was published alongside Clive’s talk at the Understanding Psychosis and Schizophrenia conference in Bath on 11 June 2015
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Meg Fluharty summarises a recent clinical overview of smoking cessation in people with severe mental illness, which provides useful practical advice to clinicians who are trying to help service users with schizophrenia, psychosis and other conditions to quit smoking
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In her debut blog, Tracey Roberts summarises a recent meta-analysis which asks: Do negative symptoms of schizophrenia change over time?
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