This cross-sectional study used a postal questionnaire to find out if there are regional differences in the attitudes of doctors and nurses to antipsychotic polypharmacy and the use of clinical guidelines. A survey was sent to 2 pairs of treatment settings in Denmark, characterized by low and high prevalence of antipsychotic polypharmacy, respectively. The questionnaire [read the full story…]
The authors of this study set out to evaluate behavioural and medication-based interventions in the treatment of challenging behaviour in people learning disabilities, both separately and in combination. They suggest that researchers might need to adapt the methods they have traditionally used to evaluate drug interventions for individuals without disabilities when working with people with [read the full story…]
This cohort study conducted by researchers from the St. Louis Veterans Affairs Medical Center set out to answer the question: Are antidepressants associated with an increased or decreased risk of incident myocardial infarction and all-cause mortality? 93,653 patients aged 25–80 years (average age 51.5 years, 14.1% female, 77.8% White, 57.1% not married) were identified using the [read the full story…]
The objective of this cost-utility analysis was to assess the cost-effectiveness of providing group cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), compared with routine primary care, for women with postnatal depression in the UK. Group CBT was compared with routine primary care for women with postnatal depression, defined by their Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) score, with scores ranging [read the full story…]
The Department of Health have published the quarterly Mental Health Community Teams activity data for 2010-11 and 2011-12 quarter 1. The data consists of a number of spreadsheets and a document available for download from the DH website. The main findings were: 2010-11 During 2010-11 10,311 new cases of psychosis were served by Early Intervention [read the full story…]
People with Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) often have excessive appetite and a decreased calorific requirement owing to low energy expenditure levels. This very small study involved three people with PWS who took part in a long-term, multicomponent mindfulness-based health wellness programme aimed at reducing levels of obesity helping them to change their lifestyles. The components of [read the full story…]
There are increasing levels of interest in stepped care models to treat mental health problems in primary care. This randomised controlled trial investigated the effectiveness of a stepped care programme for treating depression and anxiety in 120 adults (aged 18-65 years with minor or major DSM-IV depressive and/or anxiety disorders) in general practice. Patients were [read the full story…]
This year long study carried out by Medical Decision Modeling in Indianapolis set out to measure the cost-effectiveness of the olanzapine long-acting injection with other antipsychotic long-acting injections and oral olanzapine in treating patients with schizophrenia who had trouble adhering to oral drug treatment. The study used a micro-simulation economic decision model to replicate usual care. [read the full story…]
Atypical antipsychotic medications, sometimes described as second generation (for example clozapine, risperidone) have been associated with a number of side effects amongst which is weight gain. The authors of this review point out that such weight gain can be significant in people with learning disabilities using such medications. Previous studies have shown that majority of people [read the full story…]
The manufacturer of agomelatine (Servier) has informed NICE that it would not be making an evidence submission for the appraisal of agomelatine for the treatment of major depressive episodes. Servier drew attention to the fact that NICE guidelines for England and Wales recommend generic selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) as first-line treatment followed by a [read the full story…]
