Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a treatment where magnetic coils are placed above the scalp and used to generate magnetic fields, which create short-lasting electrical currents in the brain below the stimulation site. TMS is used to treat a number of health conditions including depression. This meta-analysis conducted by researchers at Oxford University presents an [read the full story…]
Researchers from Oxford and Verona have published a major new meta-analysis in the Lancet, which measures the effectiveness of all anti-manic drugs. The review team searched and found 68 randomised controlled trials from 1980-2010 (a total of 16,073 patients). The study includes a range of antipsychotics and mood stabilisers used at a therapeutic dose range [read the full story…]
Researchers from the VU University in Amsterdam and the EMGO Institute have published a nice summary of the effects of psychotherapies for adult depression. The study summarises a series of meta-analyses that they have carried out, to measure the strength of the evidence for the different types of psychotherapy in treating different types of depression. Here’s what [read the full story…]
It has long been documented that there are clinical differences between depression and bipolar disorder, but to date there has been no reliable study that shows differences in structural brain abnormalities in the two disorders. A research team from the Institute of Psychiatry in London have published a meta analysis that investigates structural brain changes in [read the full story…]
A research team from the University of Bologna in Italy have published a new meta-anlaysis that explores the sequential integration of psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy in reducing the risk of relapse and recurrence in major depressive disorder. They searched a range of databases for randomised controlled trials that tested the efficacy of the administration of psychotherapy after successful [read the full story…]
Self-guided psychological treatment is where a patient works through a programme of treatment without the aid of a therapist or coach. There are now many Internet-based treatments for depression and anxiety and there have been a number of good quality trials published during the last few years on self-guided psychological treatments for depression. There have [read the full story…]
The rates of morbidity and mortality in eating disorders are thought to be high, but the exact rates were not known before this meta analysis published in the Archives of General Psychiatry. The authors set out to systematically compile and analyze the mortality rates in individuals with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and eating disorder not otherwise [read the full story…]
This meta-analysis looks to provide reliable evidence about the effectiveness of psychological treatment for depressed inpatients. The authors carried out a systematic search and found 12 studies with a total of 570 respondents. The included studies had sufficient statistical power to detect small effect sizes, there was no significant heterogeneity, there was no indication for significant publication [read the full story…]
This meta-analysis looked at the ability of general practitioners (GPs) to recognize a spectrum of cognitive impairment from mild cognitive impairment to severe dementia in routine practice using their own clinical judgment. The authors found 15 studies reporting on dementia, seven studies that examined recognition of broadly defined cognitive impairment, and eight regarding mild cognitive impairment. By [read the full story…]
This meta-analysis adds more weight to the argument that cannabis use plays a causal role in the development of psychosis in some patients. The review pooled 83 studies that reported on age at onset of psychotic illness in substance-using and non–substance-using groups. The study found that: Age at onset of psychosis for cannabis users was [read the full story…]
