Background Depression remains a leading cause of disability and suicide worldwide, with treatment-resistant depression (TRD) affecting nearly 30% of individuals diagnosed with major depressive disorder. Esketamine nasal spray (NS) and quetiapine extended-release (XR) are both approved as adjunctive therapies for TRD; however, direct head-to-head comparisons are limited. Method A systematic...
Background Though esketamine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment-resistant depression in 2019, there is no published research on implementation challenges. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate online commentary about these challenges among mental healthcare providers. Methods Using the terms “esketamine” and “Spravato”, the author searched social...
BACKGROUND: Postpartum depression (PPD) is a severe, debilitating mood disorder with consequences for both mothers and children, highlighting the need for rapid-acting and effective treatments for PPD. The aim of this narrative review is to synthesize the available literature on the administration of ketamine for PPD and propose ketamine as a viable and advantageous treatment. METHODS: A search...
Introduction Combat veterans are at high risk for the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use disorders. Ketamine has been shown to be an effective treatment for numerous mental health disorders, although research on its efficacy in combat-related PTSD in veterans is very limited. Methods The study population consisted of 30 US military veterans with combat-related...
Background: Although numerous studies have demonstrated that mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) improves clinical and nonclinical outcomes, few studies have followed MBSR participants for >12 months, and few have analyzed post-intervention home practice. Methods: We followed a community sample of 247 self-referred adults for 2 years after completion of an 8-week MBSR program. Dependent...
BACKGROUND: 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or Ecstasy) is a synthetic amphetamine analogue that is recreationally used to obtain a psychological effect of enhanced affiliative emotional response. Its use in Western countries appears to be increasing, particularly among young individuals. METHODS: Pertinent basic and clinical literature is critically reviewed. RESULTS: A significant...
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often associated with sleep disturbances. In this review, we focus on the published literature on subjective and objective findings of sleep in patients with PTSD. Insomnia and nightmares are most commonly reported subjective sleep disturbances. Polysomnographic investigations have frequently reported rapid eye movement (REM) sleep abnormalities in PTSD....
Psychosis commonly occurs as a direct result of complex partial seizure disorder (CPSD). This organic mental disorder is indeed "complex" and is easily and frequently misdiagnosed as a variety of functional disorders, including schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar illness, psychotic depression, and, at best, "atypical psychosis." However, this important clinical syndrome has several...