Choosing between antipsychotics to reduce the risk of breast cancer in women with schizophrenia

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Peter Knapp and Suzy Ker review a recent study from Finland, which suggests that women with schizophrenia who take prolactin-increasing antipsychotics for at least five years, have an increased risk of developing breast cancer.

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Maudsley guidelines for physical health

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“There are many other ways to get our patients better than prescribing and talking.”

Shuichi Suetani reviews a recently published textbook: The Maudsley Practice Guidelines for Physical Health Conditions in Psychiatry.

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Physical health inequalities in primary care

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Andy Bell from Centre for Mental Health and the Equally Well UK collaborative, calls for action in response to the Public Health England briefing on severe mental illness and physical health inequalities.

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Quality of general hospital care through the liaison psychiatry lens?

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Kirsten Lawson explores a recent study of liaison psychiatry professionals’ views of general hospital care for patients with mental illness.

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We don’t know if general health advice improves physical health for patients with serious mental illness

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For me, one of the most infuriating aspects of health care is the relegation of mental health problems, and mental health services, as secondary to physical health. There are a myriad of examples of this, from the classic stigma that people with mental health problems receive compared to those with physical health problems (fantastically illustrated [read the full story…]

Physical health monitoring in serious mental illness is a priority in psychiatry, but where is the evidence that it works?

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It is widely acknowledged that individuals with serious mental illnesses (SMI) such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and severe depression have increased rates of mortality, due to poor physical health. As well as reducing quality of life and function and decreasing life expectancy, physical illness can worsen these mental illnesses. The reasons for this include lifestyle [read the full story…]