 |
| Printed by Publish Any Damn Thing or Perish Press. Research funded by the Keep Unimaginative Academics Employed Foundation. |
As I did on my posts of November 30, 2011, October 2, 2012, September 17, 2013, June 3, 2014, and February 24, 2015, it’s time once again to look over the highlights of the latest issue of one of my two favorite psychiatry journals, Duh! and No Sh*t, Sherlock. We'll take a look at the unsurprising findings published in the latest issue of Duh! My comments in bronze.
As I pointed out in
those earlier posts, research dollars are
very limited and therefore precious. Why waste good money trying to study
new, cutting edge or controversial ideas that might turn out to be wrong,
when we can study things that that are already known to be true but have yet to
be "proven"? Such an approach increases the success rate of studies
almost astronomically. And studies with positive results are far more likely to
be published than those that come up negative.
May 7, 2105. Study:
Bisexual And Gay Children More Likely To Be Bullied As They Grow Up
The AP (5/7, Stobbe) reports that
a research letter published May 7 in the New
England Journal of Medicine suggests that bisexual and gay children “are more
likely to be bullied as they’re growing up – even at an early age.” Researchers
found that “many of the nearly 4,300 students surveyed said they were bullied,
especially at younger ages,” but 13 percent of the 630 bisexual and gay
youngsters reported being bullied “on a weekly basis,” compared to just eight
percent of the other children.
HealthDay (5/7, Haelle) reports that
“consequences of bullying can include physical injury, anxiety, low
self-esteem, depression, suicidal thoughts, post-traumatic stress and negative
school performance...said” the study’s lead author.
This
is just more propaganda from people advancing the gay agenda.
6/15/15. Small
Study: Lisdexamfetamine May Improve Memory, Concentration Problems Associated
With Menopause.
HealthDay (6/13, Haelle) reported
that the stimulant medication lisdexamfetamine, which is “marketed for
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, might improve memory and
concentration problems associated with menopause,” according to a study of 32
menopausal women published online June 11 in Psychopharmacology. The study,
which received support from the NIH and Shire, the maker of lisdexamfetamine,
revealed that “brain activities such as memory, reasoning, multitasking,
planning and problem-solving,” improved while women were taking the medicine.
Hate to break this to the Pharma shills,
but stimulants will do that for ANYBODY.
8/4/15. Pediatric
brain injuries may be associated with attention issues
The Washington
Post (8/4,
Cha) “To Your Health” blog reports that youngsters who suffer a brain injury,
even one considered minor, may be “more likely to experience attention issues,”
according to a study published online Aug. 3 in
Pediatrics. For the study, investigators included “113 children, ages six to
13, who suffered from traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) ranging from a concussion
that gave them a headache or caused them to vomit, to losing consciousness for
more than 30 minutes, and compared them with a group of 53 children who
experienced a trauma that was not head-related.” HealthDay (8/4, Doheny) reports that
the study found that “attention lapses” suffered by the kids with TBIs “led to
lower behavior and intelligence ratings by their parents and teachers.” What’s
more, the “loss of focus was apparent even when scans showed no obvious brain
damage, the researchers said.”
Because injuries to the brain always improve
its performance.
8/18/15. Family
Problems Early In Life May Raise Boys’ Risk Of Depression, Anxiety.
HealthDay (8/18, Preidt) reports,
“Family problems early in life might raise boys’ risk of depression and
anxiety, which is also tied to altered brain structure in their late teens and”
into early adulthood, according to a study published online Aug. 17 in
JAMA Pediatrics. The study, which “included nearly 500 males, ages 18 to 21,”
found that “those boys who faced family problems during” the years from birth
to age six “were more likely to have depression and anxiety at ages seven, 10
and 13.” Such boys “were more likely to have lower volume of...’gray matter’ in
the brain by the time they reached ages 18 to 21.”
What
was Freud even THINKING?
8/31/15. Risky
Behaviors May Be Signs Of High Suicide Risk In People With Depression.
HealthDay (8/30, Preidt) reported,
“Risky behaviors such as reckless driving or sudden promiscuity, or nervous
behaviors such as agitation, hand-wringing or pacing, can be signs that suicide
risk may be high in depressed people,” research presented at the European
College of Neuropsychopharmacology’s Congress suggests. The study, which
involved some 2,800 people with depression, also revealed that “other warning
signs may include doing things on impulse with little thought about the
consequences.” People with depression “with any of these symptoms are at least
50 percent more likely to attempt suicide, the new study found.”
This
is just silly. We all know that people who are keen to die are risk averse.
10/7/15. Small Study: Older
Adults Appear To Recover More Slowly From Concussion Than Younger Patients.
HealthDay (10/7, Preidt) reports that “older adults
recover more slowly from concussion than younger patients,” according to a
study published online Oct. 6 in the journal Radiology. Included in the study
were “13 older adults, aged 51 to 68, and 13 young adults, aged 21 to 30.” All
participants were evaluated at the four-week and 10-week mark following their
concussions. While “a significant decline in concussion symptoms – such as
problems with working memory – was seen among young patients between the first
and second assessment,” researchers found “no such decrease in symptoms...in older
patients.”
Aw
come on. The body always improves with advanced age.
10/14/15. Psychological Distress May Be Highly
Prevalent In Caregivers Of Patients With Advanced Cancer.
Medscape (10/14, O'Rourke) reports
that “psychological distress is highly prevalent in caregivers of patients with
advanced cancer and is associated with both caregiver and patient factors,
researchers said...at the Palliative Care in Oncology Symposium (PCOS) 2015.”
Lead study author Ryan David Nipp, MD, said, “Caregiver characteristics that
were significantly associated with caregiver depression were being female and
having anxiety.” Dr. Nipp added, “Patient factors that were associated with
caregiver depression included patients reporting depression, that the goal of
their care was to cure their cancer, and using emotional support coping.”
The impending
death of loved ones is always such a high!
10/21/15. Parental
Involvement May Optimize Therapy For Kids With Disruptive Behavior Disorders.
Reuters (10/21, Rapaport) reports
that having parents participate in therapy for youngsters with disruptive
behavior disorders may help the children respond optimally to that treatment,
according to a meta-analysis of 66 studies published
online Oct. 19 in the journal Pediatrics.
Nonsense.
We all know that being rude is genetic.
10/28/15. Cancer
diagnosis may lead to loss of income, study indicates
The Washington
Post (10/28,
Blakemore) “To Your Health” blog reports that research indicates that cancer “can
take a heavy toll on patients’ pocketbooks, even long after they recover.” The Los
Angeles Times
(10/28, Kaplan) reports in “Science Now” that researchers found that “in the
second year after being diagnosed with cancer, survivors were earning up to 40%
less than they had been before they became sick, on average.” The data
indicated that “even in the fifth year after diagnosis, annual earnings still
had not recovered to their precancer levels.”The findings were published in
Cancer.
Because, thanks to the demise of unions,
fewer and fewer folks get paid sick days from their job any more. (I'm not being
funny).
11/10/15. Study Supports Raising SSRI Doses in Patients
Who Do Not Respond to Low-Dose Treatment
Using
a higher dose of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for major
depressive disorder appears to be associated with an increased likelihood of
response, according to a meta-analysis published today in AJP in Advance.
This benefit, which is somewhat offset by decreased tolerability of SSRIs at
high doses, appears to plateau at about 50 mg of fluoxetine (250 mg
imipramine-equivalent dose). A team of researchers in the United States and
London searched PubMed for randomized, placebo-controlled trials that examined
the efficacy of SSRIs for treating adults with major depressive disorder and
assessed improvement in depression severity at multiple time points.
Er- the first lesson in
psychopharmacology 101, I believe.
11/20/15.
Opioid Addiction In Women May Often Start With
Physician-Prescribed Medications.
Medscape (11/20, Brooks) reports
that new research suggests that the upsurge in the number of women with opioid
addiction may be attributed to prescription medicines. Researchers evaluated
“sex differences in substance use, health, and social functioning among 266 men
and 226 women receiving methadone treatment for opioid use disorder in
Ontario.” The researchers found that over half of women (52%) and a third of
men (38%) “reported physician-prescribed opioids as their first contact with
the” medications. The findings were published online Nov.
9 in the journal of Biology of Sex Differences.
