Depression and anxiety are prevalent psychiatric disorders that carry significant morbidity. Pharmacological and psychosocial interventions are used to manage these conditions, but their efficacy is limited. Recent interest into the use of psychedelic-assisted therapy using ayahuasca, psilocybin or lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) may be a promising alternative for patients unresponsive to...
ZusammenfassungObwohl Ketamin seit langem bekannt und im klinischen Einsatz ist, bleiben nach wie vor Fragen rund um die vielfältigen möglichen Anwendungsfelder als Anästhetikum und Analgetikum offen. Diese betreffen nicht das klassische Einsatzgebiet in der Notfallmedizin und Anästhesie, sondern auch potentielle, neue Indikationen, in denen Ketamin in niedrigen, subanästhetischen Dosierungen...
OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to test the efficacy of a Mindfulness-Based Childbirth and Parenting Program (MBCP) in reducing pregnant women's perceived stress and preventing perinatal depression compared to an active control condition. METHOD First time pregnant women (n = 197) at risk of perinatal depression were randomized to MBCP or an active control treatment, which consisted of a...
BackgroundRecent estimates suggest an 11% prevalence of current late-life depression (LLD) and a lifetime prevalence of 16–20%. LLD leads to cognitive disturbance as well as a nearly two to three times increased risk of dementia. We conducted a recent randomized controlled trial (RCT) which demonstrated that Sahaj Samadhi meditation (SSM), an easy-to-implement, meditation-based augmentation...
Background: This pilot study explores a therapeutic setting combining transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) for patients with drug-resistant depression. tDCS has shown efficacy for depression treatment and improvement could be maintained with the combination with mindfulness, which has shown depression relapse-prevention...
Adolescence is often accompanied by an increase in stress and depression. Although there is considerable consensus about the benefits of mindfulness-based interventions to reduce these problems, the results for the role of dispositional mindfulness facets have been mixed. Recent studies have contributed to clarifying this role by identifying subtypes of individuals according to their profiles...
Introduction: Depressive, anxiety and adjustment disorders are highly prevalent among mental health outpatients. The lack of funding for mental health problems produces inefficient results and a high burden of disease. New cost-effective group interventions aimed at treating these symptoms might be an appropriate solution to reduce the healthcare burden in mental health units. Mindfulness-based...
Like its predecessor intravenous ketamine, an anesthetic that has been used off‐label to treat depression, esketamine has shown great promise in treating a disease that can destroy quality of life and lead to suicide. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved esketamine (Spravato) last spring for treating depression that is resistant to traditional treatments.
Treatment resistant depression is a common and burdensome condition with poor outcomes and few treatment options. Approximately one third of patients with major depressive disorder are treatment resistant to the current antidepressants. In addition, depression in patients with bipolar disorder is typically poorly responsive to antidepressants. And so, there is an unmet need for rapidly acting...
There is growing interest in mindfulness as a therapeutic intervention for a variety of physical and mental health conditions, including depression. A major contribution has been the growing evidence base of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) for prevention of depressive relapse in those with recurrent unipolar depression, as well as MBCT’s application to other mood disorders, special...
The psychedelic research renaissance is gaining traction. Preliminary clinical studies of the hallucinogenic fungi, psilocybin, with psychological support, have indicated improvements in mood, anxiety and quality of life. A seminal, open-label study demonstrated marked reductions in depression symptoms in participants with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The associated neurobiological...
Loving kindness meditation and compassion meditation are traditional Buddhist practices that have recently been introduced and investigated in psychotherapy with promising results. Both meditation practices emphasize metta, a mental state of positive energy and kindness towards oneself and other beings, as opposed to the anger, hostility, or self-loathing that often accompany emotional...
Childhood maltreatment is associated with a poor treatment response to conventional antidepressants and increased risk for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NDMAR) antagonist ketamine has been shown to rapidly improve symptoms of depression in patients with TRD. It is unknown if childhood maltreatment could influence ketamine’s treatment response. We...
Esketamine nasal spray in combination with a newly initiated antidepressant was more effective than a new antidepressant plus placebo in reducing depressive symptoms in patients with treatment‐resistant depression, a Phase 3 study has found. Esketamine, the S‐enantiomer of ketamine, recently received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for treatment‐resistant depression in adults. Study...
Background Sub-threshold depression (SD) has been associated with impairments in adolescent health which increase the rate of major depression. Researchers have shown the effectiveness of mindfulness on mental health, however whether the traditional mindful skills were suitable for youngsters, it was not clear. This study investigated the effects of a tailed Mindfulness-based stress reduction...
Background and aims Given the enormous global burden of depressive illness, there is an urgent need to develop novel and more effective treatments for major depressive disorder (MDD). Recent findings have suggested that psychedelic drugs may have a role in the treatment of depressive symptoms, and a number of groups are in the process of developing protocols to study this question...
This letter is not a classic scientific work, but a cavalcade of memories that recall the long road of a research pathway on the relationship between psychopathology, brain and consciousness. Extraordinary things happened during this journey. Discussions with Kary Mullis, meetings with world-renowned scientists such as Stuart Hameroff, Mark Rasenick, Mario Tiengo and others. With them, a field...
Background: Teaching mindfulness techniques has been used in the attempt to prevent mental health problems in medical students. Although it has already shown promising results when offered to volunteers, the use as a required strategy is still controversial. Objectives: To verify the efficacy of teaching mindfulness techniques to large groups when made part of a required discipline at the...
Background: Transcendental Meditation (TM) as a stress management technique may offer an adjunctive strategy to improve health and well-being in adults with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Objectives: To examine the efficacy of TM to improve aspects of cardiovascular health and psychological functioning in adults with CVD. Method: Studies (a) evaluating TM in adults with hypertension or CVD and...
Background: Introduction: The average person has up to 15% lifetime risk for developing depression. Major depressive disorder symptoms can include a depressed mood, such as feeling sad or having more anger than normal, changes in appetite, loss of interest in activities or hobbies, psychomotor agitation or retardation, loss of energy, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, decreased ability to...