Early sex - surprising findings

A U.S. study of 534 same-sex twin pairs has found that those who had sex earlier were actually less likely to exhibit delinquent behaviour later in life. The study runs counter to most assumptions that relate early sex to later drug use, criminality, antisocial behaviour and emotional problems. By studying twins the researchers were able to eliminate the genetic and socio-economic variables that might otherwise influence the behaviour of adolescents. The study found that those people who had sex earlier developed better social relationships in early adulthood. The authors of the study plan further research to look at the type of relationships involved, how old the partners were and how long the relationships lasted.

You can read more about the research at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/13/early-sex-may-not-predict-delinquency/1527.html

Brain maturation and ADHD

There has been a lot of coverage in the media recently about ADHD with new research claiming that medication for the condition is virtually useless. Now a new study by American researchers suggests that ADHD might be caused by delayed brain development and is something that children will eventually grow out of. Researchers studied 446 participants over a period of years and found that the development of the prefrontal cortex, which helps to suppress inappropriate actions and thoughts, focus attention, remember things from moment to moment, work for reward and control movement was delayed in children with ADHD. Conversely the motor cortex matured faster than normal in children with ADHD which could explain the restlessness and fidgetiness common in these children. On average the cortex sites attained peak thickness at an average age of 10.5 in those with ADHD compared to 7.5 for the other children.

You can read more about this research at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/13/immature-brain-may-cause-adhd/1528.html

Personality and depression in older people

Diagnosis - particularly of mental-health problems - is not a completely objective process and can often be influenced by factors such as age, race and sex that are nothing to do with a patient's symptoms. A U.S. study of 318 older adults looked into the effects of people's personality on their diagnosis of depression. Previous studies have shown that neurotic, introverted people are more likely to suffer from depression. The researchers tested the participants' personality and measured their depressive symptoms. They found that, regardless of their actual symptoms neurotic and introverted people were more likely to be diagnosed as depressed whereas those people who were highly conscientious were less likely to be labelled as depressed

McCray, Laura W. ... [et al] - The role of patient personality in the identification of depression in older primary care patients International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry November 2007, 22(11), 1095-1100

Depression, illness and old age

Depression in older people is a major public health problem and is often associated with physical illness. However, it is unclear whether it is the illness itself that causes the depression i.e. there is some physiological link between the illness and depression - or whether it is the effects of the illness, in terms of pain, discomfort and restricted functioning that makes people depressed. A Singaporean study of 2,611 people over 55 looked at the links between physical illness and depression. The researchers found that high blood pressure, eye problems, diabetes, arthritis, heart disease, asthma, stroke, osteoporosis, heart failure, thyroid problems and gastric problems all raised the risk of depression. However, once people's feelings about their illness and their restricted functioning were taken into account only asthma, gastric diseases, arthritis and heart problems were found still to be linked to depression.

Niti, Matthew ... [et al] - Depression and chronic medical illnesses in Asian older adults : the role of subjective health and functional status International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry November 2007, 22(11), 1087-1094

Stress, anxiety and sleep

Experts recommend that adults get seven or eight hours sleep a night ; adolescents need nine hours, school-aged children 10-11 and pre-school children 11-13. However, a Finnish study of 19,199 people has found that stressful life situations can disturb an individual's sleep for at least six months after the event. For people sensitive to anxiety the chances for sleep disturbances were 2-3 times greater following a stressful event. The five-year study measured people's propensity for anxiety at the start and monitored their sleep patterns, and any stressful life events that may have occured, over the course of the study. After 'severe' life events men with anxiety were 3.11 times as likely to suffer from sleep disturbances compared with 1.13 times for men without anxiety. After divorce anxious men and women were 2.05 times as likely to have disturbed sleep compared to 1.47 times for non-anxious people.

You can find out more about the study at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/02/high-blood-pressure-speeds-alzheimers/1479.html

Cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's

A study of 135 people over 65 and newly diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in Utah has found that high blood pressure and a form of irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation may accelerate cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer's disease. The results of the study showed that those with high blood pressure at the time of their diagnosis showed a rate of memory loss twice as fast as those with normal blood pressure. Those with atrial fibrillation at the time of their diagnosis showed a rate of memory decline 75% faster than those with normal heartbeats. The researchers involved in the study are now looking at drugs aimed at lowering blood pressure and stabilising hearbeats to see how effective they are at staving off cognitive decline.

You can find out more about this study at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/02/high-blood-pressure-speeds-alzheimers/1479.html

Common sense, logic and schizophrenia

Common sense and logic are not always in agreement and a new study by British researchers suggests that there might be differences in the way people with schizophrenia approach conflicts between the two compared to other people. 36 people took part in the study. Participants were given a series of statements in the form of a syllogism (e.g. all plants photosynthesize, grass is a plant, therefore grass photosynthesizes) and were told that, for the purposes of the study, they should treat the first two parts of the syllogism as true. Some of the syllogisms were perfectly logical but their content was nonsense e.g. all buildings speak, hospitals do not speak therefore hospitals are not buildings while others were illogical but grounded in common sense e.g. if the sun rises then the sun is in the east, the sun is in the east, therefore the sun rises. People with schizophrenia were more successful on the task suggesting that theoretical thinking was more important to them than commonsense.

You can find out more about this study at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/02/the-logic-of-schizophrenia/1480.html

Energy drinks and alcohol - a dangerous cocktail

Some students drink 'energy' drinks alongside alcohol to counteract alcohol's depressive effect and to enable them to stay awake, and drink, longer. A U.S. study of 4,271 students from 10 universities found that those who mixed alcohol with energy drinks drank significantly more during a typical drinking session and got drunk twice as often. Even adjusting for the amount of alcohol drunk those who also used energy drinks were twice as likely to be hurt or injured, twice as likely to require medical attention and twice as likely to get into a car with a drunken driver. They were also twice as likely to take advantage of, or be taken advantage by someone sexually. White, male students who played sport were more likely to mix alcohol and energy drinks.

You can find out more about this study at

http://www1.wfubmc.edu/news/NewsArticle.htm?Articleid=2193

Overweight mothers and ADHD

A study of 12,500 children in Sweden, Finland and Denmark has suggested a link between mothers who are overweight when they become pregnant and an increased risk of Attention Deficity Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in their children. The children were monitored from their time in the womb up to school age when their teachers were asked to answer a questionnaire about the child's behaviour. The correlation between the mothers' weight and ADHD was found in moderately overweight as well as obese women. Overweight women who gained a lot of weight during their pregnancy were more at risk of having a child with ADHD than normal weight women who gained the same amount of weight while expecting.

You can find out more about this study at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/05/overweight-moms-deliver-adhd-kids/1487.html

Mum, metabolism and memory loss

A U.S. study into Alzheimer's disease has suggested that people may be more at risk of developing the condition if their mothers had it. The researchers studied people with a family history of the disease as people with an affected parent are 4-10 times more likely to develop it. In the last twenty years a number of studies have shown that people with Alzheimer's have significant reductions in energy metabolism in certain parts of the brain and these reductions are apparent years before symptoms develop. The study, of 49 people, compared energy metabolism in the medial temporal lobes and the posterior cingulate cortex - two brain regions involved with memory storage and retrieval. The participants were also administered neuropyschological and clinical tests. People whose mother had had the disease had the largest reduction in glucose metabolism ; down by 25% in the posteriour cingulate cortex. People with no family history of the disease or whose fathers had had it showed no signs of a decrease in energy metabolism.

You can find out more about this study at

http://psychcentral.com/news/2007/11/06/at-risk-if-mom-has-alzheimers/1491.html

Interventions for problem behaviour - what are the long-term effects ?

Disruptive-behaviour problems in childhood 'predict' maladjustment (e.g. violence, criminality and school drop-out) during adolescence and adulthood. A number of intervention programmes have attempted to tackle disruptive behaviours in childhood so as to reduce these problems in later life but their long-term effects are rarely evaluated. A study of 895 boys in Montreal looked into the effect of a two-year intervention programme which the boys undertook between the ages of seven and nine. The boys were then followed up at twenty-four to see how they had got on. The intervention was made up of three different elements : social skills training aimed at promoting changes in behaviour towards peers, social acceptance and less inclination towards antisocial peers ; parenting training and the provision of information and support for teachers. Significantly more boys in the intervention group graduated from high school and fewer had a criminal record compared to the control group.

Boisjoli, Rachel ... [et al] - Impact and clinical significance of a preventive intervention for disruptive boys British Journal of Psychiatry November 2007, 164, 415-419

Depression in Europe - who are the gloomiest ?

Depression is common in later life but different studies in different countries produce different prevalence rates for the condition. A study of 22,777 people in ten different European countries (not including the UK) used the Euro-D questionnaire which was specifically designed to be used in a wide variety of different languages and cultures. Even after all the other factors had been taken into account France, Italy and Spain had the highest rates of depression. Women were more likely to suffer from mood problems while older people and those with poor verbal fluency were more likely to have problems with motivation.

Castro-Costa, E. .... [et al] - Prevalence of depressive symptoms and syndromes in later life in ten European countries : the SHARE study British Journal of Psychiatry November 2007, 164, 393-401

Schemas of juvenile delinquents

Maladaptive schemas are defined as 'cognitive structures that bias information processing regarding the self, others and the world and give rise to negative automatic thoughts and depressive feelings.' Many children with 'conduct disorder' are also suffering from depression and a study of 82 youngsters in Belgium referred for antisocial-behaviour problems compared those diagnosed with depression to the rest of the sample. The depressed children felt more disconnection from, and rejection by, their parents. In terms of their relationship with their mothers the depressed children scored higher for the maladaptive schema defectiveness/shame. The depressed children's relationships with their fathers were characterised by the maladaptive schemas abandonment/instability, emotional deprivation and defectiveness/shame. The depressed children perceived their parents as more cold, unstable, unreliable and unpredictable than the other children's.

Vlierberghe, Leen Van ... [et al] - Parental schemas in youngsters referred for antisocial behaviour problems demonstrating depressive symptoms The Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology December 2007, 18(4), 515-533

Risk factors for sex offending

Sexual offenses can lead to terrible long and short-term consequences for their victims including post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. A German study of 51 inmates in a high-security forensic hospital compared those who had been convicted of sex offenses with those who had been convicted of other crimes. The researchers found that the sex offenders were more likely to be narcissists and more likely to have been sexually abused as children.

Dudeck, Manuela ... [et al] - Forensic inpatient male sexual offenders : the impact of personality disorder and childhood sexual abuse Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology December 2007, 18(4), 494-506

Anxiety in children - long-term effects

Anxiety disorders in children are quite common and associated with significant impairment in academic, social and psychological functioning. A study of 149 Black children from low-income backgrounds in the U.S. assessed their anxiety at five and then checked on their progress after seven years. Those who were highly anxious at five had poorer academic achievement and less acceptance among their peers and were more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety.

Grover, Rachel L., Ginsburg, Golda S. and Ialongo, Nick - Psychosocial outcomes of anxious first graders : a seven-year follow-up Depression and Anxiety 24(6), 410-42-

OCD and Body Dysmorphic Disorder

The relationship between Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is unclear and some psychiatrists think that BDD is part of the same family, or even a variation of OCD. A U.S. study of 295 people compared those with OCD, those with BDD and those with both conditions. The groups were fairly similar demographically, became ill at about the same age and suffered for about the same amount of time. However, people with BDD had poorer insight than those with OCD and were more likely to be delusional. Subjects with BDD were also significantly more likely than those with OCS to have suicidal thoughts, depression and substance abuse problems.

Phillips, Katherine A. ... [et al] - Obsessive-Compulsive disorder versus Body Dysmorphic Disorder : a comparison study of two possibly-related disorders Depression and Anxiety 24(6), 399-409

Imaginary friends and verbal hallucinations

One of the most interesting psychological features of young children are their relationships to their imaginary friends. Between 28-65% of young children have imaginary friends and contrary to stereotypes of such children being emotionally disturbed, withdrawn and shy recent research has shown having an imaginary friend to be associated with positive developmental outcomes. Some psychologists have wondered how having an imaginary friend in childhood might affect development in adulthood and have observed how talking to an imaginary friend bears a similarity to symptoms of psychopathology such as verbal hallucinations. A study of 80 young children (4-8) in Australia and the north of England asked them whether they had an imaginary friend and then carried out a jumbled speech task on them which measures participants' likelihood of perceiving words in meaningless but speech-like auditory stimuli. The researchers found that those children who had an imaginary friend were more likely to report hearing words and phrases in the jumbled speech task independent of their age, sex and verbal ability. The findings of the study were consistent with the hypothesis that engaging with imaginary friends is one aspect of a general susceptibility to imaginary verbal experiences.

Fernyhough, Charles ... [et al] - Imaginary companions and young children's responses to ambiguous auditory stimuli : implications for typical and atypical development Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry November 2007, 48(11), 1094-1101

Intercountry adoption and mental illness

Intercountry adoption is increasingly common and currently involves more than 40,000 children a year in over 100 countries. Large numbers of children adopted from foreign countries are now reaching adulthood, the age of onset for most serious mental disorders, yet little is known about the effects of inter-country adoption on children's mental health. A study of children in Denmark who were adopted from abroad has found that they had a 2.9 times greater risk of developing schizophrenia than native Danes. The increased risk was independent of age at, or the region of, adoption, mental illness among foster parents, the age of foster parents or whether the foster parents lived in the city or the countryside. The foster mother's own children also had an increased (1.92 times) risk of developing schizophrenia. The researchers were not sure why this might be so but speculated that it could be due to hereditary factors in the children, traumatic experiences suffered by children prior to adoption or the disruption caused by the adoption and resettlement process itself.

Cantor-Graae, Elizabeth and Pedersen, Carsten Becker - Risk for schizophrenia in intercountry adoptees : a Danish population-based cohort study Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry November 2007, 48(11), 1053-1060

Seasonality and bipolar disorder

Approximately 10% of all cases of mood disorders show a seasonal pattern of recurrence but this figure is thought to be higher in bipolar disorder with some studies showing that 20% of this group have some element of seasonality in their symptoms. Some studies have shown peaks of depression in the autumn and peaks of mania in early spring and late summer while other studies have shown little difference in hospitalization rates with the seasons. A ten-year Spanish study of 325 people with bipolar disorder found that 25.5% of them showed a seasonal pattern of symptoms. There were no demographic differences between those with seasonal and non-seasonal forms of bipolar disorder. People with seasonal bipolar disorder were more likely to have the bipolar II form of the condition and were more likely to have more depression than mania. However, people with a seasonal aspect to their bipolar disorder were no more likely to be suicidal, hospitalized or suffer from psychosis.

Goikolea, J. M. ... [et al] - Clinical and prognostic implications of seasonal pattern in bipolar disorder : a 10-year follow-up of 302 patients Psychological Medicine November 2007 37(11), 1595-1599

Suicidality in adolescence

Suicidality in adolescence and young adults is a well-recognised public-health problem and globally suicide is the fifth leading cause of death in young people taking between 100,000 and 200,000 lives a year. A study of 1,684 young adults in Canada examined whether they had ever had any thoughts about taking their life, their suicide attempts and their completed suicides. The researchers found that approximately 1 in 500 of the group killed themselves. About 33 % of the participants had thought about killing themselves and 9.3 % had made at least one suicide attempt. Over half of those who had attempted to kill themselves had made their first attempt before the age of eighteen. Women were more likely than men to make suicide attempts but men were four times more likely than women to succeed in killing themselves. Apart from gender other risk factors for suicide were disruptive behaviour, childhood anxiety, child abuse and suicidal thoughts.

Brezo, Juliana ... [et al] - Natural history of suicidal behaviors in a population-based sample of young adults Psychological Medicine November 2007, 37(11), 1563-1574