A blood test for depression? 07/22/2010. Blood tests have been extremely important tools aiding doctors in making medical diagnoses and in guiding the treatment of many diseases. However, psychiatry is one area of medicine where there are few diagnostic blood tests.
New scientific fields may someday generate blood tests that can be used for these purposes. Some of the areas under increasingly intensive study are genetics, the study of variations in the genes (DNA) that can be extracted from blood cells, and genomics like proteomics, the measurement of the levels of specific proteins in the blood, and gene expression profiling, which measures the levels of RNA produced from DNA as an indication of the level of the "activity" of particular genes.
Using the latter approach, Dutch researchers evaluated blood gene expression profiles in healthy individuals and patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder, or MDD. They identified a set of seven genes in whole blood that was able to distinguish un-medicated MDD patients from healthy controls. Eurekalert!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Gulf War Illness Funding Approved
VA approves $2.8M for Gulf War Veterans' illness research program 07/22/2010. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has approved $2.8 million to fund three new research projects that focus on testing or developing new treatments for illnesses affecting Veterans who served in the Gulf War 1990-1991. The research incorporates recommendations of the department's Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Task Force .The Medical News
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Rates of PTSD Peak Later in women Than in Men
Women in their 50s more prone to PTSD than men 07/21/2010. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) rates peak in women later than they do in men. Researchers writing in BioMed Central's open access journal Annals of General Psychiatry found that men are most vulnerable to PTSD between the ages of 41 and 45 years, while women are most vulnerable at 51 to 55. PhysOrg.com
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Soldiers With TBI Have Increased Risk of Epilepsy Later in Life
Soldiers with Brain Injuries at Higher Risk of Epilepsy Decades Later 07/20/2010. Soldiers who receive traumatic brain injuries during war may be at a higher risk of epilepsy even decades after the brain injury occurred. The new research is published in the July 20, 2010, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Newswise
Monday, July 19, 2010
Stellate Ganglion Block for PTSD
Obama Loves This Freaky PTSD Treatment; the Pentagon, Not So Much 07/19/2010. Military-backed efforts to find an effective treatment for post-traumatic stress are making sluggish progress. The Pentagon is funding all kinds of ideas — from yoga to telepsychology. All have their limitations. But one doctor is convinced he’s found a viable way to treat the estimated 20 percent of troops now coming home with PTSD — if only the Pentagon would give it a shot. Dr. Eugene Lipov, a Chicago-based anesthesiologist, pioneered the modern-day use of stellate-ganglion block (SGB) in 2004, to eliminate hot flashes among post-menopausal women. SGB, which has been used to relieve migraines and chronic pain since the 1920s, involves a single injection into the sympathetic nerve tissue on the right side of a cervical vertebra. Wired
How Anxiety Manifests During Stressful Situations
Battlefield psychologists investigate stress in combat and after 07/19/2010. Psychologists aren't usually called to the battlefield, but the 2008-09 Gaza War gave Tel Aviv University researchers a unique picture of how anxiety manifests during stressful situations. In a new study in the American Journal of Psychiatry, Prof. Yair Bar Haim of TAU's Department of Psychology reports that people confronted with acute stress -- daily rocket attacks -- tend to dissociate from threats instead of becoming more vigilant. This research overturns accepted convention and may lead to better understanding of the mechanisms underlying acute stress reactions, he says. Eurekalert!
Ecstacy for PTSD?
MDMA (Ecstasy)-assisted psychotherapy relieves treatment-resistant PTSD 07/19/2010. MDMA (±3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, also known as Ecstasy), may one day offer hope for individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), even people for whom other treatments have failed. Clinical trial results out today in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, published by SAGE, suggests that MDMA can be administered to subjects with PTSD without evidence of harm and could offer sufferers a vital window with reduced fear responses where psychotherapy can take effect. PhysOrg.com
Monday, July 12, 2010
New PubMed Articles 12 July 2010
1.
Werner RM, Bradlow ET.
2.
Morris A.
3.
Golden AG, Ma Q, Nair V, Florez HJ, Roos BA.
Ann Pharmacother. 2010 Jul 6. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20606016 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
4.
Drekonja DM, Kuskowski MA, Johnson JR.
Am J Infect Control. 2010 Jun 3. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20605268 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
5.
Duriseti RS, Brandeau ML.
Ann Emerg Med. 2010 Jun 2. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20605261 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
6.
Fincke BG, Miller DR, Christiansen CL, Turpin RS.
BMC Health Serv Res. 2010 Jul 6;10(1):193. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20604922 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Free ArticleRelated citations
7.
Impink BG, Gagnon D, Collinger JL, Boninger ML.
8.
Fisher DA, Grubber JM, Castor JM, Coffman CJ.
9.
Sawhney MS, McDougall H, Nelson DB, Bond JH.
Dig Dis Sci. 2010 Jun;55(6):1637-42. Epub 2010 Mar 3.PMID: 20195757 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]Related citations
10.
Cheung R, Mannalithara A, Singh G.
Dig Dis Sci. 2010 Jun;55(6):1744-51. Epub 2010 Feb 26.PMID: 20186486 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]Related citations
11.
Fried SK, Tittelbach T, Blumenthal J, Sreenivasan U, Robey L, Yi J, Khan S, Hollender C, Ryan AS, Goldberg AP.
J Lipid Res. 2010 May;51(5):1193-200. Epub 2009 Nov 25.PMID: 19965580 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]Related citations
12.
Ajumobi A, Bahjri K, Jackson C, Griffin R.
Dig Dis Sci. 2010 Jun;55(6):1615-21. Epub 2009 Aug 11.PMID: 19669878 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]Related citations
VA Clinics Ordered to Stop Playing Games With Veterans' Appointments
VA official to clinics: Stop gaming the system 07/12/2010. After years of complaints from veterans who say they aren’t getting VA medical appointments within 30 days even if Veterans Affairs Department records show they are, a top VA official sent out a memo asking employees to quit “gaming” the system. “It has come to my attention that, in order to improve scores on assorted access measures, certain facilities have adopted use of inappropriate scheduling practices sometimes referred to as ‘gaming strategies,’ ” wrote William Schoenhard, VA’s deputy undersecretary for health for operations and management, in the April 26 memo. NavyTimes
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Vanguard Episode: War Crimes
Anyway, I wanted to give you an advance heads up about this week’s episode of “Vanguard” – “War Crimes" in which Correspondent Kaj Larsen (a former SEAL) takes a sobering look at PTSD and its impact on American soldiers returning from Iraq & Afghanistan. Kaj explores the growing crisis of incarceration among soldiers traumatized in the wars in Iraq & Afghanistan and hears stories from the men and women who, after serving our country, now find themselves behind bars. I know it’s not the most feel-good story, but it’s definitely an issue that needs more awareness. Rob Wilson
Three New VAOIG Reports
Combined Assessment Program Review of the Central Texas Veterans Health Care System Temple, Texas; Report Number 10-01189-187, 7/9/2010 | Summary | Report (PDF)
Audit of Guide and Service Dog Program; Report Number 10-01714-188, 7/7/2010 | Summary | Report (PDF)
Healthcare Inspection Evaluation of Physician Credentialing and Privileging in Veterans Health Administration Facilities; Report Number 10-02381-185, 7/6/2010 | Summary | Report (PDF)
Veterans Cannot Depend Solely on the DoD or VA for Mental Health Care
Military And Veterans Mental Health 07/11/2010. American troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and other veterans cannot depend solely on the Departments of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) for mental health care-even though the civilian mental health care system is in crisis, according to the annual convention of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) held this past week. Medical News Today
LA Times: From Swords to Plowshares
From swords to plowshares: Introducing military veterans to farming 07/11/2010. Veterans Sustainable Agriculture Training and other groups aim to encourage former soldiers, sailors and Marines to consider careers in farming and other food-related businesses. LA Times
New PubMed Articles 11 July 2010
1.
Bradley MD.
Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 2010 Jul 2. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20596720 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
2.
Desai M, Rachet B, Coleman MP, McKee M.
3.
D'Avolio LW, Nguyen TM, Farwell WR, Chen Y, Fitzmeyer F, Harris OM, Fiore LD.
J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2010 Jul-Aug;17(4):375-82.PMID: 20595303 [PubMed - in process]Related citations
4.
Hoskins MH, Kacharava AG, Green TF, Mavromatis K; Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Decatur, GA.
Int J Cardiol. 2010 Apr 15;140(2):e27-9. Epub 2008 Dec 24.PMID: 19108906 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]Related citations
5.
Garcia S, Rider JE, Moritz TE, Pierpont G, Goldman S, Larsen GC, Shunk K, Littooy F, Santilli S, Rapp J, Reda DJ, Ward HB, McFalls EO.
Catheter Cardiovasc Interv. 2010 Jul 2. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20602474 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
6.
Allicock M, Ko L, der Sterren EV, Valle CG, Campbell MK, Carr C.
Prev Med. 2010 Jun 22. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20600260 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
7.
Stevens KE, Cornejo B, Adams CE, Zheng L, Yonchek J, Hoffman KL, Christians U, Kem WR.
Brain Res. 2010 Jul 2. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20599427 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
8.
Voils CI, Yancy WS Jr, Weinberger M, Bolton J, Coffman CJ, Jeffreys A, Oddone EZ, Bosworth HB.
Patient Educ Couns. 2010 Jul 2. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20599337 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
9.
Chapman JC, Andersen AM, Roselli LA, Meyers NM, Pincus JH.
10.
Worley MJ, Trim RS, Tate SR, Hall JE, Brown SA.
J Subst Abuse Treat. 2010 Jul 2. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20598832 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
11.
Neylan TC, Mueller SG, Wang Z, Metzler TJ, Lenoci M, Truran D, Marmar CR, Weiner MW, Schuff N.
Biol Psychiatry. 2010 Jul 1. [Epub ahead of print]PMID: 20598672 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]Related citations
12.
Reinke LF, Shannon SE, Engelberg R, Dotolo D, Silvestri GA, Curtis JR.
13.
Bohnert AS, Fudalej S, Ilgen MA.
14.
Davis LE, Guerre J, Gerstein WH.
Arch Neurol. 2010 Jun;67(6):759-60. Review.PMID: 20558398 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]Related citations
Female Veterans Nearly Four Times as Likely as Men to End Up Homeless
Female Veterans Struggle To Stay Off Streets 07/11/2010. More than 240,000 female service members have been deployed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but for many, reintegrating into civilian life and trying to find employment is not within their reach. The Department of Veteran Affairs has acknowledged that women are nearly four times as likely as men to end up homeless. NPR
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
