Current Psychiatry Reviews - Volume 9, Issue 4, 2013

Among the numerous forms of comorbid mental health and substance use disorders, co-morbidity between alcohol use disorders (AUD) and depression has received considerable attention. AUDs and depression co-occur at levels greater than expected by chance in clinical and epidemiological samples. Studies suggest that about 80% of patients with AUD experience depressive symptoms at some stage in their li Read More

Deficits in social functioning are prevalent in individuals with schizophrenia and can often be as debilitating as the illness itself. Recent research has suggested that problems in social functioning can be seen long before the onset of schizophrenia and are generally present throughout the course of the disease. Recent literature on social functioning is critically reviewed for high-risk groups, first-episode psychosis, and later schizop Read More

Sexual dysfunction is a common symptom in patients with depression and a frequent, poorly tolerated side effect of antidepressants used in treating their condition. The severity of this impairment can lead to non-adherence to the very medications prescribed for these patients and interfere with their recovery. Antidepressant-associated sexual dysfunction reduces patients’ quality of life and therapeutic efficacy, yet Read More

Though the basic pathophysiology of psychosis is largely unknown, there is reliable evidence that genes contribute to its aetiology. Epidemiologic studies suggested that chronic use of cannabis is a risk factor for the development of psychosis. Recent researches have focused on the identification of genetic variants that moderate the effect of cannabis on psychosis occurrence. We undertook a systematic review of pri Read More

Background: All antipsychotic agents marketed since clozapine have been categorized as “atypical”, without regard for the true definition of “atypicality”. The standard practice of designating every new agent as “atypical” not only ignores the definition, but conveys a false sense of safety for the majority of these medications when considering the risks of movement disorders, both acute and latent. Though receptor profile Read More

Depression and anxiety are common during pregnancy. Depression is associated with preterm birth, low birth weight, and intrauterine growth restriction. Risk factors related to depression and anxiety during pregnancy are poor social support, poor quality of intimate relationship, poverty and previous episodes to depression and anxiety. When these mental disorders are untreated, poor health behaviors are observed in pr Read More

Objective: To review current literature on the effectiveness of preventive antidepressant treatment in patients with Chronic Hepatitis C (CHC) treated with pegylated interferon (IFN)-alpha and ribavirin. Methods: We identified studies published from 2001 to May 2013 that evaluated the effectiveness of preventive antidepressant use in patients with CHC treated with IFN. We excluded studies that focused on symptomatic Read More

Background: A reciprocal association exists between Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Coronary Heart Disease (CHD). A quantitative evaluation of this association is necessary to identify potential areas of clinical intervention. However, the association is unclear because of methodological differences and confounders across studies. This review examines the impact of methodology and confounding variables on the magnit Read More

Objective: This article provides an up-to-date review of major drug interactions and an overview of food interactions with monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI) including both antidepressants and other drugs used in general medicine. Data Sources: English language literature identified by PubMed search of terms including monoamine oxidase, phenelzine, tranylcypromine, isocarboxazide, selegiline, rasagiline, linezolid, met Read More