Dropping out of virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety: comparison with in-vivo exposure therapy

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Aislinn Bergin writes her debut elf blog on a recent meta-analytic examination of attrition in virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety disorders.

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How can we prevent depression in young adults?

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Mental Health Masters Students from UCL explore a recent systematic review and meta-analysis of interventions to prevent depression in young adults. The review finds some evidence for the effectiveness of preventative interventions in reducing depressive symptoms in young adults, but the evidence in this area remains weak.

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Cannabis use in the developing brain: evidence from a recent cross-sectional meta-analysis

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Joe Barnby considers the findings of a recent meta-analysis of cross-sectional observational data, which explores the association of cannabis with cognitive functioning in adolescents and young adults.

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Direct funding and older people: why are we still talking about choice?

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Francesca Pozzoli considers a qualitative metasynthesis of directly funded home-care programmes for older people and the concept of ‘choice’.

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Reminiscence therapy for people living with dementia: Cochrane review is inconclusive

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Liz Collier and Solomon Towuru summarise the recently updated Cochrane systematic review on reminiscence therapy for dementia, which includes evidence showing that reminiscence therapy may improve quality of life, cognition, communication and possibly mood in people with dementia in some circumstances, although all the benefits were small.

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Youth suicide prevention research needs a shake-up: lives depend on it

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Pooky Knightsmith appraises a systematic review and meta-analysis entitled: “What Works in Youth Suicide Prevention?”. She is disappointed that the review does not answer the question it sets, but sees this as a call to action for better quality research to help save lives.

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Genetics of depression: understanding risk and improving treatment

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Douglas Levinson on a genome-wide meta-analysis of depression in 807,553 individuals, which identifies 102 independent variants relating to the genetics of depression.

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Sense of coherence and mental health of caregivers: a systematic review and meta-analysis

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Martin Webber looks at a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies reporting on the association between informal carers’ sense of coherence, caregiver burden and mental health outcomes.

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The impact of facial scarring: routinely assess for affective distress

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Andrew Thompson writes his debut blog on a recent systematic review that explores the associations linking facial scarring (largely caused by assaults or burn injuries) to depression and anxiety.

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Treating depression with physical activity in young people

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Simon Brett summarises a robust systematic review that looks at the effectiveness of physical activity as a treatment for depression in adolescents and young adults.

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