March 28, 200812:00 pm
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Genetic mutations may account for schizophrenia

According to a recent online report in Sciencepress a wide range of genetic mutations may account for schizophrenia. According to Jon McClellan, M.D., of the University of Washington and colleagues, 15% of patients with schizophrenia in his study had novel duplications and deletions of genetic material. Conversely, only 5% of healthy controls matched by ancestry were found to have the variations. The changes in genetic material were found to more often than not effect neurodevelopment, according to the researchers. The following is an excerpt of an article from MedPageToday.com that reviews the study:

Most genetic research into schizophrenia assumes that the illness is caused by combinations of common alleles, each with a modest effect — the “common disease-common allele” model, Dr. McClellan and colleagues said.

The current study suggested another model, they said. “Some mutations predisposing to schizophrenia are highly penetrant, individually rare, and of recent origin, even specific to single cases or families.”

The model would explain why researchers have had trouble finding common genetic variants that are linked to the disease, they said.

In that model, the researchers said, the key factor is not a particular mutation, but the disruption of key genes by any mutation.

“Neurodevelopmental pathways involve hundreds of genes,” they said. “A severe mutation in any one of these genes may lead to a psychopathological phenotype.”

What’s more, they said, different mutations in the same gene might lead to schizophrenia, autism, mental retardation, or perhaps no clinical outcome at all.

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Click here for information on the treatment of Psychotic Disorders

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March 27, 20088:07 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Exercise is instrumental in reducing stress

Although there are many different ways to reduce stress, exercise is perhaps one of the most effect methods, which also results in other positive physical outcomes. Christina Geithner, Ph.D., an American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) fitness instructor, explained that stress not only has ill affects on the mind but also on the body. During her presentation at the ACSM’s 12th-annual Health and Fitness Summit and Exposition, Dr. Geithner relayed that stress can cause sleep problems, headaches, fatigue, appetite changes, an increase in cortisol secretion, increased resting heart rate, weight changes, and increased blood pressure, to name a few. Although meditation and breathing can and do produce relaxation, exercise improves the person’s overall physical health with time. According to Dr. Geithner, “Exercise serves as a distraction from the stressor, and results in reduced muscle tension and cortisol secretion. The additional benefit of exercise is that when done alone or used in combination with other stress reduction methods, it also improves physical fitness and has the potential for more profound effects on chronic disease risk reduction than other stress reduction strategies.” The following is an excerpt of an article from MedicalNewsToday.com that reviews Dr. Geithner’s comments:

“Stress is a common problem in today’s society, largely because increased pressure to perform on the job has created work/life imbalances,” Geithner said. “Other major stressors include death of a spouse or family member, divorce, marriage, and personal injury or illness.” She also cited job demands, a move or change in a work or living situation, relationship issues or arguments, financial issues, and holidays as possible causes of stress.

Many methods of stress reduction exist, including breathing, meditation, progressive relaxation, and exercise. All tend to reduce anxiety, depression, heart rate and blood pressure, and enhance a feeling of relaxation and wellbeing.

“Exercise serves as a distraction from the stressor, and results in reduced muscle tension and cortisol secretion,” Geithner said. “The additional benefit of exercise is that when done alone or used in combination with other stress reduction methods, it also improves physical fitness and has the potential for more profound effects on chronic disease risk reduction than other stress reduction strategies.”

As part of a stress management routine, Geithner suggests eating a healthy diet, getting adequate sleep, practicing breathing exercises, and including aerobic as well as mind/body exercise such as yoga, t’ai chi, or pilates.

“Make time for activities and people you enjoy on a regular basis, and laugh often,” she said. “Try to accept that you can’t control everything in your life. Make choices that support your well-being and reduce your stress, rather than add to it.”

Click here to read the rest of this article from Medical News Today

Click here for information on stress related disorders

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March 26, 20087:38 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

A deterrent to heavy drinking during Spring break

Spring break, although not exclusively defined as such, is typically a time when students, both college and high school, go to warmer coastal areas and party. On average 1.5 million students participate in this behavior, drinking large quantities of alcohol while vacationing. A study published in the September 2007 issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs found that students who go on spring break vacations with friends are likely to drink approximately three times as much alcohol than those that stay home with family.

Rather than exclusively saying, “don’t drink over spring break,” a good tactic for youth and young adult ministers to deter spring break drinking is to discuss the actual affects of heavy drinking on the body; this idea comes complements of the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s (AAAS) The Science Inside Alcohol Project, which conducted research on the effects of teen drinking. The following is an excerpt of quiz content developed by the AAAS from Medical News Today that relays some simple facts about the effects of heavy drinking on the body:

1. Most college students do not drink very much during spring break.

FALSE. The Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs reports that students show “bursts” of heavy alcohol use during holidays, vacations and weekends. Students in this study reported having more than 30 drinks each over a four day period during spring break.

2. Vomiting, confusion, stupor, and the inability to wake up are the results of alcohol poisoning.

TRUE. Students may think their friend is just really drunk but he or she can also have alcohol poisoning, which can be fatal. More than 1,500 college students each year die from unintentional alcohol-related injuries including car crashes, according to MADD.

3. Black-outs (not remembering what happened while drinking) are a regular occurrence among college students who drink frequently.

TRUE. Twenty seven percent of students who drank reported at least one incident of forgetting who they were with or where they were while drinking. More than half reported having memory loss during drinking at some point in their lives.

4. Some women can drink as much as men and it won’t affect them differently.

FALSE. Alcohol mixes with body water and women have a higher percentage of water in their bodies, so the amount of alcohol women drink becomes highly concentrated quickly.

5. Only a few medications interact harmfully with alcohol.

FALSE. More than 150 medicines should not be mixed with alcohol including sleeping pills, antihistamines, antidepressants, anti-anxiety drugs, painkillers and also medicines for diabetes, high blood pressure, epilepsy, antacids and those for motion sickness. Mixing alcohol with these types of medications can be extremely dangerous.

Click here to read the entirety of this article from Medical News Today

Click here for information on the treatment of alcohol addiction

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March 24, 20087:27 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Happily married men and women have lower blood pressure than those that are single

According to a recent study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, happily married men and women have lower blood pressure than those that are single. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Ph.D, of Brigham Young University, and colleagues, found that people engaged in happy marriages have lower 24-hour blood pressure and waking blood pressure than those that are single or unhappily married. The study found that unhappily married individuals have higher blood pressure than the happily married or single. According to Dr. Holt-Lunstand, “there seem to be some unique health benefits from marriage… it’s not just being married that benefits health. What’s really the most protective of health is having a happy marriage.” There is also evidence that those who are married experience less morbidity and mortality than singles. Additionally, married couples were found to have higher levels of life satisfaction. The following is an excerpt of an article from Medpage Today that reviews the study:

Dr. Holt-Lunstad and colleagues examined the influence of social relationships on blood pressure in 204 patients who had been married an average of eight years and 99 singles, 89% of whom had never been married. About a third of the study population was hypertensive (systolic ≥120 mm Hg or diastolic ≥80 mm Hg).

Each participant completed a battery of tests to assess social and psychological status. Blood pressure was assessed by means of 24-hour ambulatory monitoring, which recorded 72 blood pressure values at random intervals.

The investigators evaluated 24-hour and waking blood pressure and nocturnal dipping in blood pressure values. The 24-hour and waking blood pressure values did not differ between married and unmarried individuals.

Both groups had dips in blood pressure at night, but the decline was greater in the married group (P<0.01 for systolic, P<0.05 for diastolic). After stratification by marital satisfaction scores, nocturnal dipping did not differ between married individuals with low satisfaction scores and single people.

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March 21, 20087:19 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Second Chance

Scott Silverman almost committed suicide twenty-three years ago. Substance abuse that escalated over two decades led him to an open 44th floor window, which Silverman stood by contemplating suicide. Just before what could have been disaster, a colleague of Silverman’s intervened. The next day Silverman went to rehab and has been sober ever since. Silverman’s new hope in life has meant not only his sobriety but also the sobriety of thousands of others. In 1993 Silverman started “Second Chance,” a San Diego based program for the homeless, people in shelters, and for those just released from jail. The program offers job training, housing, and mental health and substance abuse support for those enrolled. Since its conception, Second Chance has given over 24,000 people a new start. The following is an excerpt of an article from CNN.com that discusses Silverman and his program:

Fast forward to 2008. Silverman has turned not only his own life around but also the lives of thousands of others. Rehab and volunteering brought him close to a community of others in need: people in shelters, those who were homeless, others who had come out of jail.

They all shared one problem, Silverman saw: They were unable to find and keep a job.

“I thought, I’ve been in treatment, I’ve lost jobs, but I got lucky and had a very supportive family. I had to find a way to help them more effectively,” he said.

The vehicle for that assistance is his Second Chance program in San Diego, California. It provides job readiness training, housing for sober living, and mental health and employment support services for what Silverman calls a “difficult-to-serve” population.

Started in 1993, Second Chance has provided services to more than 24,000 individuals. It helps graduates with job placement and follows up with them for two years.

Of 219 Second Chance graduates in 2004, 169 found employment, the organization says. Three-quarters of them remained employed two years later.

One key to its success, Silverman said, is that the Second Chance program begins with transitional, sober-living housing for its clients.

“You’ve got to have an address to get a job, and you have to have a job to keep an address,” he said. “I started with a little tiny house that we rented downtown, and in 2008 we have eight single-family homes and our main office where all the programs are run.”

Click here to read the rest of this article from CNN.com

Click here for information on depression and suicide

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March 19, 20087:40 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Metabolic status important to consider when choosing an antipsychotic drug

An individual’s metabolic status is important to consider when choosing an antipsychotic drug. Weight gain, hyperglycemia, and dyslipidemia can occur when atypical antipsychotic drugs are prescribed to individuals without an accommodating metabolic status. Unfortunately, a recent retrospective study has revealed that less than 25% of patients are tested for glucose status or lipids by their physician prior to being prescribed antipsychotic drugs. According to Elaine H. Morrato, Dr.P.H., of the University of Colorado, 1,000 patients were tested for metabolic status six months before being prescribed an antipsychotic drug and their cholesterol levels, fasting blood glucose, and triglycerides were not found to be associated with drug choice. The following is an article from Medpage Today that reviews the findings of the study:

Atypical antipsychotic agents have been associated with metabolic changes such as weight gain, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia. Both the American Psychiatric Association and American Diabetes Association recommend routine metabolic screening and consideration of a patient’s metabolic status when selecting an atypical antipsychotic, the authors noted in a poster presentation at American Psychiatric Association meeting.

Yet physicians report that fewer than 25% of patients are screened for lipids or glucose status prior to being started on a drug, and even when patients are screened for metabolic risk factors, their physicians don’t always take the information into consideration when planning treatment with an antipsychotic agent, the investigators wrote.

The findings are emblematic of the failure of modern medicine to fully integrate the treatment of the mind with the treatment of the body, commented Thomas Wise, M.D., chairman of psychiatry at Inova Fairfax Hospital in Fairfax, Va., who was not involved in the study.

“In order to have the proper treatment, one cannot partition mind from body,” he said. “In addition to a system that doesn’t work, we have completely partitioned psychiatric care from medical care. It may be an overstatement or hyperbole, but somebody’s going to have to prove to me that it’s not true.”

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March 18, 20087:39 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Honesty is the best policy

According to recent statements from the American Heart Association, younger patients experiencing chest pain similar to that associated with a heart attack need to be completely honest with their ER physicians. According to Dr. James McCord, “The symptoms that they get with the cocaine are very similar to a heart attack.” While cocaine use can cause a heart attack, it more often can cause the duplication of heart attack symptoms such as dizziness, sweating, chest pain, anxiety, palpitations, nausea, and the like. In light of the similarity of indicators, it creates an issue when physicians diagnose patients based solely on symptoms and not on complete disclosure from the patient.

The fact is that not disclosing cocaine use during emergency treatment can result in death. Some of the treatments for heart attack can be deadly to persons using cocaine. According to Dr. James Reiffel, professor of clinical medicine at Columbia University, “Not knowing what you are dealing with and giving the wrong therapies could mean death rather than benefit.” The following is an excerpt of an article from the AP that reviews the American Heart Association’s recommendations:

The number of cocaine-related users visiting ERs rose 47 percent from 1995 to 2002, increasing from 135,711 to 199,198, according to the government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (That’s a tiny percentage of the more than 100 million patient visits to emergency rooms each year.)

“The symptoms that they get with the cocaine are very similar to a heart attack,” said Dr. James McCord, who chaired the statement writing committee.

Cocaine can cause a heart attack, but only about 1 percent to 6 percent of patients with cocaine-associated chest pain actually have a heart attack, the statement says. Still, doctors say it’s important for anyone with chest pain to get it checked out.

Cocaine increases blood pressure and the heart rate, constricting arteries into the heart, said McCord, cardiology director of the chest pain unit for the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit.

“Your heart rate goes up because your heart needs more oxygen, then it shrinks the arteries to the heart,” McCord said.

The statement says that since most cocaine-associated chest pain isn’t a heart attack, such patients should be monitored instead of being admitted to the hospital. They would have an electrocardiogram and other tests to rule out a heart attack.

Click here to read the rest of this article from the AP

Click here for information on the treatment of drug addiction

Action Point: Information such as this provides youth Pastors and young adult ministers the opportunity to merge sermons with hard facts about drug use. The simple fact is that lying about drug use in a life or death situation can lead to many complications or even death; this point is a bit more convincing accompanied by medical findings.

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March 17, 20087:18 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Kicking the habit during pregnancy may make for a happier baby

According to a recent study published in the Journal of Epidemiological and Community Health, a benefit of quitting smoking during pregnancy is the increased possibility of a cheerful and easy-going baby. Conversely, children whose mothers smoke during pregnancy are more likely to have poor adaptability and mood, which, according to Kate Pickett, Ph.D., of the University of York, are precursors of antisocial behavior. According to the researchers, quitting smoking during pregnancy generally reflects the mother’s personality and her desire to protect her child. However, there has been a great deal of debate as to whether or not babies with more pleasant dispositions can be attributed to maternal characteristics or teratological effects. The following is an excerpt of an article from Medpage Today that reviews the study:

To test the competing hypotheses, the researchers undertook a study of more than 18,000 British babies born from 2000 through 2002, who were participants in the Millennium Cohort Study.

Their mothers were classified as either non-smokers during pregnancy, quitters, light smokers, or those who smoked 10 or more cigarettes a day (heavy smokers).

The infants’ temperaments were assessed when they were nine months old, using the validated Carey Infant Temperament Scale. The test was designed to pick up positive mood, receptivity to new things, and regular sleep and eating patterns (regularity).

More than a third (35.7%) of the mothers reported smoking at some time during pregnancy, although almost half of these quit smoking. Only a small proportion of the sample (9.5%) smoked heavily throughout pregnancy.

Women who smoked through pregnancy had significantly smaller infants and shorter gestations. The women who quit smoking had infants with birth weights and gestations comparable to non-smokers.

Click here to read the rest of this article from Medpage Today

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March 14, 20087:04 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Body image distortion

Body image is determined by four different factors. How one believes they look, how others believe they look, a perception of the perfect body, and how one actually looks, are all lenses through which people view their bodies. Body image is directly related to one’s self-perceptions, and consequently one’s self-esteem. As such, and unfortunately, many people allow how they view their bodies to dictate their future happiness and success. The following is an excerpt of a story from AdvanceWeb.com about Sarah, age 55, who is grappling with her body image:

Sarah, 55, is launching a plan for the second half of her life. Divorced for 1 year, a mother of two grown children and grandmother of five, she says she’s determined to embrace the mantra “60 is the new 40″ that baby boomers coined when the first wave of this trendsetting group turned 60 last year.

Even though Sarah is financially secure, she decides to work outside her home. Before she married and started her family, Sarah was a full-time accountant. For the past 15 years, she worked at home. Recently, she told her family she believes working in an office would meet her professional needs and serve as a social outlet for her.

Concerns About Body Image
Sarah knows she’ll be a viable candidate for an accounting position after completing a few refresher courses. However, as confident as she is about her career skills, this middle-aged woman recently confessed to a friend that she fears employers will evaluate her based on her looks-instead of her skills.

Click here to read the rest of this article from AdvanceWeb.com

Click here for information on the treatment of eating disorders

Action Point: With increasing pressure from images in media to have the perfect body, it is important for Pastors and others in the helping professions to be aware of the struggles that both men and women go through to “measure up.” One of the key elements in helping people to disclose about their struggle is to be accepting of the person and to express how common body-image distortion is. Disclosure could be the first step an individual takes towards obtaining professional help.

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March 13, 20087:12 am
posted by Aric Thorpe, MHR

Review: Paul Wellston Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007

Changes are underway to create equity in group health plan policies for the treatment of mental health and substance abuse diagnosis. On March 6th the House of Representatives passed the Paul Wellston Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007. Support for the legislation was overwhelming at 268 for, and 148 against. The bill requires group health insurers and health plans to create parity between coverage for substance abuse and mental health treatment and medical / surgical benefits. In particular, the bill ensures that out-of-network mental health costs will be covered just as out-of-network medical and surgical services are. Additionally, the bill ensures that diagnosis for mental health and substance abuse, which have been given by the medical community, are covered. Charles B. Rangel, Ways and Means Committee Chairman, said, “This bill rights an unconscionable wrong… Today we have made a great stride toward eliminating discrimination against people with mental illness and addiction, and I am proud of the House for working to correct this great injustice.” Obviously, the bill has the overwhelming support of advocates as well as organizations that treat mental illness and addiction. The following is an excerpt from Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s website, a forum that discusses current legislation, which gives an overview of the bill:

Specifically, the bipartisan bill prohibits insurers and group health plans from imposing treatment or financial limitations when they offer mental health benefits that are more restrictive from those applied to medical and surgical services.

The bill applies only to insurers and group health plans that provide mental health benefits. It also exempts businesses of 50 or fewer employees; and businesses that experience an overall premium increase of 2 percent or more in the first year and 1 percent in subsequent years.

Over the last eight years, the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) has made “parity” coverage for mental health care available to Members of Congress and 8.5 million other federal employees. Research has shown that there has been no significant cost increase attributable to this parity requirement in FEHBP.

Furthermore, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated a miniscule impact on premiums for the mental health parity bill – just two-tenths of one percent.

The two offsets in this bill were included in the CHAMP (Children’s Health and Medicare Protection) Act, which the House passed on August 1, 2007. One increases the rebate (or discount) that pharmaceutical companies are required to provide to State Medicaid programs for drugs provided to Medicaid beneficiaries. The second prohibits physicians from referring patients to hospitals in which they have an ownership interest (with a grandfather provision).

Click here to read more from Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s website

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