Traumatic brain injury has long-lasting mental health effects, but we need more robust science

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Lorna Collins considers an umbrella review of health outcomes following traumatic brain injury, which highlights significant evidence gaps in the field.

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Continuing antipsychotic medication during pregnancy associated with reduced risk of schizophrenia relapse

A pregnant woman

Shuichi Suetani and Sarah Thomas highlight new research from Korea which suggests that antipsychotic medications do seem to help reduce the relapse of schizophrenia in pregnant women.

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Working on the edge: the therapeutic alliance in suicide prevention

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Laura Melzer considers a qualitative review of client and therapist perspectives on the therapeutic alliance in the context of psychotherapy for suicidal feelings.

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Personal trauma is associated with secondary traumatic stress in mental health professionals

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Linda Gask blogs a systematic review finding that personal trauma is linked to onset of secondary trauma in mental health professionals.

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Hormonal coil dosage and depression risk

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Dr Rachel Reid-McCann discusses the latest research on dosage of levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) and the risk of depression. A well conducted study from Denmark “provides evidence of a dose-dependent association between LNG exposure and risk of subsequent depression across three dosages”.

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Childhood adversity and adult depression: Psychoanalysis vs CBT

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Ella Tuominen looks at a study of childhood adversity and ‘treatment resistant depression’ and asks: Can long-term psychoanalytic therapy provide deeper healing for chronic depression than CBT?

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Home-based brain stimulation (tDCS) for depression: ready for widespread use?

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Julian Mutz discusses the results of a new 10-week RCT assessing home-based brain stimulation for depression, which suggests that tDCS may be a safe, acceptable and efficacious treatment for moderate depression.

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Treatment of harmful gambling in the UK: new review highlights worrying lack of evidence

Developing evidence-based interventions for gambling-related harms would help improve the effectiveness of care across under-recognised populations. 

Clare Gerada and Ruby Wiltshire summarise a new scoping review of UK-based research on the treatment of harmful gambling, which finds a complete lack of high quality intervention studies to support decision making.

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“Dem sey mi mad”: Afro Caribbean Experiences of Psychosis

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Hári Sewell explores Afro Caribbean men’s experiences of psychosis, social and migration difficulties, and challenges accessing mental health services in North America and the United Kingdom.

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The genetic relationship between ADHD and depression

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Tim van der Es discusses a recent paper that investigates whether ADHD causally increases the risk of subsequent major depression diagnoses. The study findings underscore the need for effective treatment and assessment of ADHD and a requirement for a deeper understanding of the potential causal mechanisms linking ADHD and depression.

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