Neuropsychology
A groundbreaking trial is to be launched today which uses digital avatars to represent the auditory hallucinations experienced by people with psychosis.
The AVATAR 2 trial uses the unique therapy to help those with psychosis increase power and control over the voices they hear and reduce their distress. The trial – led by the University of Glasgow and developed by King’s College London, UCL and UCL Business – is being launched in Glasgow with an online event which will celebrate the first full quarter of running the AVATAR2 trial in Scotland. The therapy trial is also being extended to sites across the country including University of Manchester, as well as King’s College London and University College London.The AVATAR 2 trial uses the unique therapy to help those with psychosis increase power and control over the voices they hear and reduce their distress. The trial – led by the University of Glasgow and developed by King’s College London, UCL and UCL Business – is being launched in Glasgow with an online event which will celebrate the first full quarter of running the AVATAR2 trial in Scotland. The therapy trial is also being extended to sites across the country including University of Manchester, as well as King’s College London and University College London.
Gender differences are clear when it comes to military veterans seeking and accessing mental health support due to stigma around seeking such help, new research has revealed.
Although only a minority of both male and female veterans are accessing support, females appear to have additional barriers to overcome when seeking help, such as negative gender stereotypes and a lack of recognition of their veteran status. Barriers to accessing mental health services among veterans are well researched in the UK, and examples include a lack of military specialist healthcare professionals and anticipated mental health-related stigma. However, these studies have included predominantly male participants, meaning the understanding of barriers to access experienced by female veterans is limited.
Children who experience cognitive problems including low attention, poor memory or lack of inhibition may later have mental health issues as teenagers and young adults, new research has found. Analysing data from 13,988 individuals born in the UK between April 1991 and December 1992, the study discovered a number of key and specific links between childhood cognitive problems and mental health issues in later life, such as:
- Deficits in sustained attention in eight-year-olds precede development of borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms at 11-12 years and depression at 17-18 years;
- Difficulties with inhibition in eight-year-olds were associated with psychotic experiences at 17-18 years;
- Working memory deficits in 10-year-olds were related to hypomania at 22-23 years.
The numbers of suicides globally remained largely unchanged or even declined in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, compared with the levels experts feared.
Amidst the developing mental health crisis arising from the deadly virus sweeping the world, a new study has shown that between April 1 and July 31 last year, suicide levels in 21 countries worldwide did not increase. However, the authors of the study, published in The Lancet Psychiatry journal, note that this only provides a snapshot of the early stages of the pandemic - and that governments must remain vigilant to longer-term mental health effects.
Aggressive and angry parenting practices can have long-term repercussions for a child’s brain development, new research has found.
Repeatedly getting angry, hitting, shaking or yelling at children is linked with smaller brain structures in adolescence, which can have emotional and social impact later in life.
Practicing a form of meditation can lead to significant reductions in the severity of symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), new research has found.
In a study of veterans who adopted the Transcendental Meditation technique, 50 per cent of the group no longer met criteria for PTSD after three months. The randomised controlled study also showed significant reductions in veterans’ symptoms of depression, anxiety and sleep difficulties.
Growing evidence is emerging that COVID-19 can lead to long-term neuropsychological deficits, even in its mild or moderate respiratory forms, a new study has concluded.
For years, health experts have suspected the presence of long-term neuropsychological deficits after SARS-C0V-2 infection, with studies about the two previous coronavirus outbreaks - the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) - demonstrating the presence of neuropsychological symptoms. These include sleep disorders, emotional instability, impaired concentration, frequent recall of traumatic experiences, impaired memory and fatigue. The symptoms were shown to manifest in more than 15 per cent of affected patients about one month to 3.5 years following infection.
Following this week’s neurodiversity evidence review, organised by HM Inspectorate of Prisons, Dr Ivan Pitman, consultant clinical neuropsychologist at The Disabilities Trust, who was part of the round-table event, shares his comments.
“This follows our work over the past 20 years and which culminated in the UK Government’s formal acknowledgment in Parliament in June 2018 of the widespread prevalence of brain injury within the Criminal Justice System; a milestone in acceptance which we were proud to have reached with our colleagues in the sector. Our work at The Disabilities Trust has shown that brain injury in adult males, women and adolescents within Criminal Justice System is up to five times higher than the general population - a figure too pointed to be ignored.
