This USA based meta-analysis looked at the association between parenting and outcomes for children with developmental disabilities. The authors point out that despite there being an extensive literature supporting the positive relationship between positive parenting and child outcomes for typically developing children, there has been little work to analyse the literature specific to children with [read the full story…]
Major depression all too often develops a chronic course, with every episode making future relapse more likely (Gilmer et al., 2005). Dysthymic disorders represent a less severe, but more persistent form of depression lasting for at least two years. In the affective disorder spectrum, chronic forms are unsurprisingly associated with greater functional impairment and overall [read the full story…]
This blog is coming across the woodland in stereo as the Diabetes and Mental Elf join forces. In 2011 the Diabetes Elf highlighted Depression and Diabetes: a two way street? a systematic review looking at cause and effect of diabetes and depression and the link between diabetes and cardiovascular disease is not contested. However moving forward [read the full story…]
When you were young(er), did you also engage in personality predictions with your peers based on order in the family? For example, that the oldest of three siblings would be the bossiest and the youngest the most spoiled? Almost everyone (90% of us) have one or more siblings. And we know they play an important role [read the full story…]
Alcohol, together with tobacco and obesity, is one of the most important modifiable causes of morbidity and premature mortality, and is estimated to account for around 4% of deaths worldwide. This study attempted to clarify the number of alcohol-attributable cancer deaths in the United States, and the years of potential life lost in this way. [read the full story…]
Research suggests that many people with schizophrenia or related psychoses show a striking lack of insight into their condition (Dam, 2006). Poor insight can have a negative impact on several outcomes, including general adjustment (Stefanopoulou et al., 2009), quality of life (Drake et al., 2007), social functioning (Drake et al., 2007) and rehospitalisation. With this [read the full story…]
Depression is such a widely known issue now that it barely needs introduction. It’s something we Elves have covered with interest, looking at the effectiveness of various treatments, like psychotherapy, medication and exercise. For older adults though, there remains a somewhat hazy picture of what treatments work best. Most of the evidence base for the [read the full story…]
This blog entry is the second in a series which is examining the mental health benefits of yoga. Last month I blogged about yoga for psychiatric disorders, and today I shall be looking specifically at the benefits for schizophrenia. The benefits of exercise and physical activity for schizophrenia are increasingly being recognised. Regular exercise can [read the full story…]
SSRIs are usually considered first-line treatment against major depression and approximately 50% of patients achieve remission with the drug they try first (Steffens, Krishnan, & Helms, 1997). However, every eighth case proves to be treatment-resistant and does not respond to standard antidepressant treatment at all. As a last resort, second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) effective in schizophreniform [read the full story…]
How brain imaging can help us understand mental health problems and their treatment is another service that the mental elf team will hopefully be able to offer. By blogging about interesting new studies we hope to help you pick up a wee bit of how MRI, CT, EEG and MEG adds to our understanding. While [read the full story…]
