For frontline healthcare workers, the mental health impact from the pandemic is extending beyond career burnout. Much of the attention on the mental toll suffered by frontline workers has focused on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). New research from a collaboration between Syracuse University and the University of Pittsburgh reveals that even those who are not formally diagnosed as suffering from […]
The proportion of opioid overdose deaths involving buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder, did not increase in the months after prescribing flexibilities were put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study. These data provide evidence that may help to inform buprenorphine prescribing policies. Published today in JAMA Network Open, this study was a collaborative effort […]
Scientists have worked out why common anti-depressants cause around a half of users to feel emotionally ‘blunted’. In a study published today, they show that the drugs affect reinforcement learning, an important behavioural process that allows us to learn from our environment. According to the NHS, more than 8.3 million patients in England received an antidepressant drug in 2021/22. A […]
Six minutes of high-intensity exercise could extend the lifespan of a healthy brain and delay the onset of neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. New research published in The Journal of Physiology shows that a short but intense bout of cycling increases the production of a specialised protein that is essential for brain formation, learning and memory, and could […]
There is new evidence that a 50-year-old blood pressure drug could find new purpose as a treatment to mitigate the often life-altering effects of increasingly prevalent PTSD, scientists say. Clonidine is commonly used as a high blood pressure medication and for ADHD. It’s also already been studied in PTSD because clonidine works on adrenergic receptors in the brain, likely best known […]
The artificial intelligence algorithms behind the chatbot program ChatGPT — which has drawn attention for its ability to generate humanlike written responses to some of the most creative queries — might one day be able to help doctors detect Alzheimer’s Disease in its early stages. Research from Drexel University’s School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems recently demonstrated that […]
As concerns about youth mental health, school shootings, and other forms of violence prompt more school systems to conduct mental health screenings, a UCR-led analysis is urging school officials to proceed with deference to student family, cultural, and community backgrounds. Mental health screenings that focus solely on identifying at-risk students without taking into account their backgrounds and their strengths may […]
Despite the continuing growth of benzodiazepine (BZD)-related overdoses, BZD prescription rates have held constant. Much is unknown about how a doctor’s own beliefs about BZD use and potential harm to patients might influence their willingness to prescribe the drug. Using a Medicare database, researchers identified primary care providers who had prescribed a BZD in 2017 and surveyed a random sample […]
Hayley Gorton is an experienced clinical pharmacist who has specialised in mental health. As a senior lecturer at the University of Huddersfield she leads a research team with a special interest in self-harm and suicide prevention. In this series of short videos, she describes her research findings and the ways in which community pharmacy teams can contribute to suicide prevention. […]
The inclusion of antidepressants in the New Medicine Service for community pharmacists provides a good opportunity for pharmacist to provide extra support for patients at a critical time, says Dr Hayley Gorton, senior lecturer in pharmacy practice at the University of Huddersfield and suicide prevention researcher. [embedded content] Pharmacists and pharmacy teams that want to find out more about contributing […]
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