http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. A nose job to treat a mental health problem? Teeth whitening to overcome a severe anxiety disorder? These are just two procedures that people with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) have traditionally turned to in order to deal with body-related concerns. The excessive use of (and dissatisfaction with) cosmetic treatments, along with obsessive rituals and social isolation, is what scientists from the Fernand-Seguin Research Centre of Louis-H. Lafontaine Hospital, affiliated with the University of Montreal, are hoping to fight with a novel therapy to treat BDD. http://phys.org/news196947251.html Medicine & Health Mon, 28 Jun 2010 12:50:01 EST news196947251 Brief therapy at the GP's surgery can effectively treat anxiety and depression. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Medicine found that cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) was effective for treating anxiety disorders, while CBT, problem solving therapy (PST) and counseling were all equally effective in treating depression and mixed anxiety and depression. http://phys.org/news196627973.html Medicine & Health Thu, 24 Jun 2010 20:20:01 EST news196627973 The use of Omega-3 supplements is effective among patients with major depression who do not have anxiety disorders, according to a study directed by Dr. François Lespérance of the Centre de recherche du Centre hospitalier at the University of Montreal (CRCHUM). The study was published June 15 in the online Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. http://phys.org/news196344726.html Medicine & Health Mon, 21 Jun 2010 13:27:59 EST news196344726 There may be a biological reason why depression and other stress-related psychiatric disorders are more common among women compared to men. Studying stress signaling systems in animal brains, neuroscience researchers found that females are more sensitive to low levels of an important stress hormone and less able to adapt to high levels than males. http://phys.org/news195820421.html Medicine & Health Tue, 15 Jun 2010 11:34:12 EST news195820421 A research conducted at the University of Granada, Spain, has identified the different effects of being of a nervous disposition and being anxious at a given moment on what happens around us. Being of a nervous disposition and being anxious at a given moment affects our attention to what happens. http://phys.org/news195381995.html Medicine & Health Thu, 10 Jun 2010 10:10:01 EST news195381995 Researchers have found a way to pharmacologically induce a memory of safety in the brain of rats, mimicking the effect of training. The finding suggests possibilities for new treatments for individuals suffering from anxiety disorders. http://phys.org/news194792258.html Medicine & Health Thu, 03 Jun 2010 14:00:01 EST news194792258 University of Michigan scientists have provided the most detailed picture yet of a key receptor in the brain that influences the effectiveness of serotonin-related antidepressants, such as Prozac. http://phys.org/news194505580.html Medicine & Health Mon, 31 May 2010 15:00:07 EST news194505580 (PhysOrg.com) -- Older Australians are being overprescribed medications for depression, according to a study by researchers published today in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry. http://phys.org/news193633445.html Medicine & Health Fri, 21 May 2010 04:30:48 EST news193633445 Rates of mood and anxiety disorders appear to decline with age but the conditions remain common in older adults, especially women, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of General Psychiatry. http://phys.org/news192123905.html Medicine & Health Mon, 03 May 2010 17:30:02 EST news192123905 Weizmann Institute scientists have identified a gene that links mental stress to such metabolic diseases as obesity, diabetes and arteriosclerosis. http://phys.org/news190899095.html Medicine & Health Mon, 19 Apr 2010 15:00:05 EST news190899095 (PhysOrg.com) -- Exercise is a magic drug for many people with depression and anxiety disorders, according to researchers who analyzed numerous studies, and it should be more widely prescribed by mental health care providers. http://phys.org/news189359312.html Medicine & Health Thu, 01 Apr 2010 16:48:54 EST news189359312 Poet W.H Auden dubbed the post-World War II nuclear era the “age of anxiety” and indeed, at the time, anxiety disorders were the most commonly diagnosed mental illnesses. Yet, by the 1990’s, American psychiatry was “Listening to Prozac” and instead of obsessing about angst, it focused its attention on depression. http://phys.org/news188754896.html Medicine & Health Thu, 25 Mar 2010 16:56:16 EST news188754896 A new questionnaire and outcomes measurement scale developed by the department of psychiatry at Rhode Island Hospital has proven to be a reliable and valid measure of anxiety. The scale can easily be incorporated into routine clinical practice when treating psychiatric disorders. The study appears online ahead of print in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. http://phys.org/news187351283.html Medicine & Health Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:01:35 EST news187351283 (PhysOrg.com) -- Drugs known as HDAC inhibitors may prove useful in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to a study conducted by faculty at The University of Texas at Austin's Waggoner Center for Alcohol and Addiction Research. http://phys.org/news186671274.html Medicine & Health Mon, 01 Mar 2010 13:50:02 EST news186671274 The 1994 genocide in Rwanda resulted in the mass killing of up to one million people over the course of about 100 days. Although the exact death toll is unknown, experts estimate that as much as 20% of the country's entire population was murdered. There can be no doubt or surprise then that some of the survivors developed posttraumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, an anxiety disorder that can develop after witnessing or experiencing a traumatizing event, such as abuse, war, or natural disaster. http://phys.org/news186316583.html Medicine & Health Thu, 25 Feb 2010 10:36:44 EST news186316583 With the national trend toward quitting smoking flat, psychologists are finding some success with treatments aimed at helping smokers from underserved groups, including racial and ethnic minorities and those with psychiatric disorders. http://phys.org/news185198706.html Medicine & Health Fri, 12 Feb 2010 12:20:01 EST news185198706 (PhysOrg.com) -- People who naturally notice negative information over positive information are more susceptible to stress, research has revealed. The findings increase our understanding of what makes people vulnerable to stress and could lead to new forms of therapy. http://phys.org/news184348666.html Medicine & Health Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:10:01 EST news184348666 Draw a map of the brain when fear and anxiety are involved, and the amygdala -- the brain's almond-shaped center for panic and fight-or-flight responses -- looms large. http://phys.org/news183819726.html Medicine & Health Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:20:01 EST news183819726 Researchers at the University of Minnesota and Minneapolis VA Medical Center have identified a biological marker in the brains of those exhibiting post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). http://phys.org/news183185709.html Medicine & Health Wed, 20 Jan 2010 05:10:01 EST news183185709 Studying animals in behavioral experiments has been a cornerstone of psychological research, but whether the observations are relevant for human behavior has been unclear. Weill Cornell Medical College researchers have identified an alteration to the DNA of a gene that imparts similar anxiety-related behavior in both humans and mice, demonstrating that laboratory animals can be accurately used to study these human behaviors. http://phys.org/news182707874.html Medicine & Health Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:13:50 EST news182707874 Only about half of American children and teenagers who have certain mental disorders receive professional services, according to a nationally representative survey funded in part by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The survey also provides a comprehensive look at the prevalence of common mental disorders. http://phys.org/news179995830.html Medicine & Health Mon, 14 Dec 2009 07:30:01 EST news179995830 Scientists have for the first time selectively blocked a conditioned fear memory in humans with a behavioral manipulation. Participants remained free of the fear memory for at least a year. The research builds on emerging evidence from animal studies that reactivating an emotional memory opens a 6-hour window of opportunity in which a training procedure can alter it. http://phys.org/news179587833.html Medicine & Health Wed, 09 Dec 2009 13:31:48 EST news179587833 Scrambled connections between the part of the brain that processes fear and emotion and other brain regions could be the hallmark of a common anxiety disorder, according to a new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine. The findings could help researchers identify biological differences between types of anxiety disorders as well as such disorders as depression. http://phys.org/news179431065.html Medicine & Health Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:59:10 EST news179431065 Anxiety sensitivity, or the fear of feeling anxious, may put people who are already above-average worriers at risk for depression, according to Penn State researchers. Understanding how sensitivity to anxiety is a risk factor for depression may make anxiety sensitivity a potential target for treating depression in the future. http://phys.org/news178868238.html Medicine & Health Tue, 01 Dec 2009 06:30:01 EST news178868238 Breathing carbon dioxide can trigger panic attacks, but the biological reason for this effect has not been understood. A new study by University of Iowa researchers shows that carbon dioxide increases brain acidity, which in turn activates a brain protein that plays an important role in fear and anxiety behavior. http://phys.org/news178374999.html Medicine & Health Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:37:43 EST news178374999 It is well known that fear memories are permanent. However, a recent paper in Science, evaluated by three Faculty Members for F1000, reports an extraordinary finding that supports the use of a drug to control recollections of traumatic incidents. http://phys.org/news176990269.html Medicine & Health Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:58:15 EST news176990269 Researchers have discovered that a primitive region of the brain responsible for sensorimotor control also has an important role in regulating emotional responses to threatening situations. This region appears to work in concert with another structure called the amygdala to regulate social and emotional behavior. http://phys.org/news175348250.html Medicine & Health Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:00:02 EST news175348250 Depression, anxiety disorders and sexual trauma have all been implicated as risk factors in lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) such as incontinence and overactive bladder. The exact nature of these associations is unknown. In a study published online in The Journal of Urology, researchers from the Division of Urology, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and the Hunter Holmes McGuire Veterans Affairs Hospital, Richmond, Virginia, explored the possible association of LUTS with those factors. http://phys.org/news175235643.html Medicine & Health Tue, 20 Oct 2009 06:00:01 EST news175235643 New research shows that streptococcal infection does not appear to cause or trigger Tourette syndrome or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The research is published in the September 30, 2009, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. http://phys.org/news173552700.html Medicine & Health Wed, 30 Sep 2009 19:00:02 EST news173552700 Adolescent depression and anxiety disorders are two distinct psychiatric disorders, according to Dr. William W. Hale III (a researcher of the Langeveld Institute for the Study of Education and Development in Childhood and Adolescence at Utrecht University) in a recent publication in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. http://phys.org/news172931369.html Medicine & Health Wed, 23 Sep 2009 13:30:43 EST news172931369