For his ninth Mental Elf blog, Mark Smith reports on a Cochrane systematic review of the effectiveness of short term psychodynamic therapies on common mental health disorders.
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Ioana Cristea reviews a recent systematic review and meta-analysis of collaborative care for depression, looking to identify factors predicting improvements. The study finds that collaborative care successfully improves both patient outcomes and the process of care for depression.
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Joe Judge appraises a recent systematic review and meta-analysis looking at the duration of untreated psychosis as a predictor of long-term outcomes in schizophrenia.
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Dave Steele reports on a recent meta-analysis of mental health anti-stigma programs, which on the whole are found to be effective at reducing the stigma associated with mental disorders.
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Nikki Newhouse summarises a recent US health technology assessment of antidepressants for depression in pregnancy and the postpartum period, which concludes that the evidence remains inconclusive about the benefits and harms of antidepressants for depression in pregnancy.
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Laurence Palfreyman summarises 3 recent Cochrane reviews, which investigate high-potency versus low-potency first-generation antipsychotic drugs for schizophrenia. The reviews find little difference in efficacy between the high-potency antipsychotics Trifluoperazine, Haloperidol, Fluphenazine, and low-potency typical antipsychotics.
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Chris Pell summarises a recent meta-analysis of prevalence estimates and moderators of low bone mass in people with schizophrenia. The study finds a significantly increased risk of osteoporosis in people with schizophrenia.
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Helen Bould summarises a recent review that maps the evidence for the prevention and treatment of eating disorders in young people. Her conclusion? A call to arms for more better quality research to help people affected by these serious illnesses.
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Meg Fluharty summarises a recent systematic review looking at exercise for antenatal depression. The review finds preliminary evidence to suggest that exercise may be effective in reducing depression during pregnancy, but the quality of included trials is low to moderate.
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André Tomlin and Douglas Badenoch voice a note of caution about the Lancet Psychiatry meta-analysis of cannabis use in young people. The study links cannabis use in children with low educational attainment, cannabis dependence, illicit drug use and suicide attempts in later life.
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