Psychiatry research
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Psychiatry research · Sep 2019
Review Meta AnalysisBrexanolone for postpartum depression: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled studies.
To systematically examine the effectiveness, tolerability, and safety of brexanolone infusion in treating postpartum depression (PPD). ⋯ A single brexanolone infusion appears to have ultra-rapid antidepressant effect for PPD, lasting for up to 1 week. The short and long-term therapeutic effect of brexanolone needs to be examined in large-scale RCTs.
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Psychiatry research · Sep 2019
Meta AnalysisPolygenic liability for schizophrenia predicts shifting-specific executive function deficits and tobacco use in a moderate drinking community sample.
Individuals with schizophrenia have higher lifetime rates of substance use disorders than the general population, and research suggests high comorbidity rates may be partially explained by shared genetic influences related to common underlying etiology. Moreover, deficits in executive functions are thought to be central to the diagnosis of schizophrenia and are likewise associated with alcohol and tobacco use. The current study examined the associations between schizophrenia polygenic risk scores and tobacco and alcohol use and the mediation of these associations by executive function sub-domains. ⋯ However, risk scores were not significantly associated with alcohol use and executive functions were not significantly associated with either tobacco or alcohol use. These findings extend previous research by suggesting that genetic risk for schizophrenia may be associated with specific sub-domains of executive function as well as smoking. The lack of a relation with alcohol use suggests genetic factors related to schizophrenia and executive functioning may not influence drinking in a non-disordered, social-drinking sample.
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Psychiatry research · Sep 2015
Meta AnalysisA meta-analysis of the response of pathological hoarding to pharmacotherapy.
This meta-analysis aimed to identify all studies that have assessed treatment response for pathological hoarding treated with pharmacological agents. Seven studies were identified with a total of 92 participants. Most participants had a diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorder. ⋯ More than half (ER=0.58, 95% CI=0.37-0.76) of the participants treated with pharmacotherapy responded. This study encourages us to consider the use of SRIs in patients with hoarding disorder. The study also encourages more studies of pharmacotherapy for pathological hoarding, noting that these studies should use validated outcome measures that specifically assess pathological hoarding and novel agents that target the unique neurobiological correlates of pathological hoarding.
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Psychiatry research · Jan 2014
Meta AnalysisNocebo in clinical trials for depression: a meta-analysis.
Nocebo refers to adverse events (AEs) related to negative expectations that medical treatment will likely harm instead of heal and can be assessed in placebo-controlled randomized clinical trials (RCTs). We sought to examine the AEs following placebo administration in RCTs for depression (D). After a systematic Medline search for RCTs in depression published in the last decade we assessed percentages of placebo-treated patients reporting at least one AE or discontinuing due to placebo intolerance and searched for factors influencing nocebo's extent. ⋯ Of 3255 placebo-treated patients, 44.7% (95% CI: 22.3-68.3%) reported at least one AE, and 4.5% (95% CI: 3.4-5.8%) discontinued placebo treatment due to intolerance. AE rates in placebo and active drug treated patients were correlated quantitatively (r=0.915, p<0.001) and qualitatively, but not dropout rates (r=0.047). We conclude that almost one out of 20 placebo treated patients discontinued treatment due to AEs, indicating a significant nocebo in trials for depression treatment adversely affecting adherence and efficacy of current treatments in clinical practice, with additional implications for trial designing.
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Psychiatry research · Jan 2014
Meta AnalysisMultimodal voxel-based meta-analysis of structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging studies in those at elevated genetic risk of developing schizophrenia.
Computational brain-imaging studies of individuals at familial high risk for psychosis have provided interesting results, but interpreting these findings can be a challenge due to a number of factors. We searched the literature for studies reporting whole brain voxel-based morphometry (VBM) or functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) findings in people at familial high risk for schizophrenia compared with a control group. A voxel-wise meta-analysis with the effect-size version of Signed Differential Mapping (ES-SDM) identified regional abnormalities of functional brain response. ⋯ The multimodal analysis revealed relatives had decreased grey matter with hyper-activation in the left inferior frontal gyrus/amygdala, and decreased grey matter with hypo-activation in the thalamus. We found several regions of altered activation or structure in familial high-risk individuals. Reliable fMRI findings in the right posterior superior temporal gyrus further confirm that alteration in this area is a potential marker of risk.