A new study by Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University researchers reports that fewer than half the patients previously diagnosed with bipolar disorder received a diagnosis of bipolar disorder based on a comprehensive, psychiatric diagnostic interview–the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID).
The study concludes that while recent reports indicate that there is a problem with underdiagnosis of bipolar disorder, an equal if not greater problem exists with overdiagnosis. The study was published online by the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Principle investigator Mark Zimmerman, M.D., will present the findings at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association on Wednesday, May 7. [continue reading…]
Prom time means lots of teenagers driving late and with other teens in the car – a combination that dramatically raises the risk of teen driver traffic accidents. Professor and teen driving expert Kenneth Beck, University of Maryland, College Park, School of Public Health, can offer advice for parents of teen drivers, especially the newest drivers. He can also discuss the topic and take calls on radio or TV broadcast. [continue reading…]
Dr. Richard Weisler, adjunct professor of psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, is the lead investigator in a phase-3 clinical study which found that the drug quetiapine fumarate, currently used forschizophrenia and bipolar disorder, may also help people with a form of clinical depression known as major depressive disorder (MDD).
The six-week, randomized, multicenter, double-blind study of 723 patients found significantly reduced depression scores by day 4 of treatment in all quetiapine XR (extended release) dosage groups versus
placebo.
Weisler notes that with existing antidepressants, it usually takes two to three weeks or longer for patients with MDD to begin showing responseto treatment. [continue reading…]
Whether a young man’s mother earned a college degree and whether she worked outside the home while he was growing up seems to have an effect years later when he considers his ideal wife, according to a study by University of Iowa sociologist Christine Whelan.
High-achieving men — those who earn salaries in the top 10 percent for their age and/or have a graduate degree — are highly likely to marry a woman whose education level mirrors their mom’s. [continue reading…]
