Copyright 2009 Medical News Today Latest Bipolar News From Medical News Today. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/bipolar/ admin@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Admin) editors@medicalnewstoday.com (MNT Editors) en-us Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171543.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/171543.php To help bring greater certainty to the measurement of medication levels in a patient's bloodstream for three drugs with narrow therapeutic ranges, the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP) is releasing new certified reference materials (CRMs). Medical Devices / Diagnostics Sat, 14 Nov 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170879.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170879.php Removing the PKCI/HINT1 gene from mice has an anti-depressant-like and anxiolytic-like effect. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Neuroscience applied a battery of behavioral tests to the PKCI/HINT1 knockout animals, concluding that the deleted gene may have an important role in mood regulation. Depression Thu, 12 Nov 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170732.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/170732.php Malfunctioning circadian clock genes may be responsible for bipolar disorder in children. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Psychiatry found four versions of the regulatory gene RORB that were associated with pediatric bipolar disorder. Bipolar Thu, 29 Oct 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169121.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/169121.php Mental Health America is applauding legislation introduced by a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators to establish national centers of excellence for the treatment of depression and bipolar disorders. The centers will create a national network to help diagnose people in need and improve access to evidence-based, quality care. The bill, called the "ENHANCED Act" was introduced by U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich. Bipolar Wed, 28 Oct 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168930.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168930.php A major breakthrough in mental health has been developed, a cooperative venture between the National Bipolar Foundation and the MedicAlert Foundation; a preventative care program called "Safe 'til Stable." It provides vital medical information to emergency responders in time of need through our live 24-hour emergency response service. In a medical emergency, this can help reduce the trauma experienced by individuals impacted with bipolar disorder. Bipolar Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168893.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/168893.php ADA Technologies, Inc. (ADA) received a $189,886 grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to develop a home lithiummonitor for use by patients with bipolar disorder. The testing tool would allow reliable, routine at-home monitoring of blood lithium concentrations, enabling individuals with bipolar disorder to conveniently and effectively manage their care. Effective treatment of bipolar disorder, an inherited disease that affects 5. Bipolar Tue, 06 Oct 2009 06:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/166376.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/166376.php The finding suggests that a single gene, called GSK-3, controls the signals that determine how many neurons actually end up composing the brain. This has important implications for patients with neuropsychiatric illness, as links have recently been drawn between GSK-3 and schizophrenia, depression and bipolar disorder. Schizophrenia Wed, 30 Sep 2009 04:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/165712.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/165712.php Bipolar disorder, or manic-depression, causes severe and unusual shifts in mood and energy, affecting a person's ability to perform everyday tasks. With symptoms often starting in early adulthood, bipolar disorder has been thought of traditionally as a lifelong disorder. Now, University of Missouri researchers have found evidence that nearly half of those diagnosed between the ages of 18 and 25 may outgrow the disorder by the time they reach 30. Bipolar Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/163473.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/163473.php Yale University researchers report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (September 7-11 edition) that damage to the brain caused by chronic stress or lead poisoning can be repaired by blocking a key molecular pathway. Research shows that rats exposed to chronic stress develop damage to the prefrontal cortex. This is an area of the brain essential to working memory, impulse control and the ability to stay focused on tasks. Bipolar Wed, 09 Sep 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/163282.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/163282.php Damage to the brain caused by chronic stress or lead poisoning can be repaired by blocking a key molecular pathway, Yale University researchers report in the September 7-11 edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Rats subjected to chronic stress develop damage to the prefrontal cortex, an area of the brain crucial to working memory, impulse control and the ability to stay focused on tasks. Anxiety / Stress Fri, 28 Aug 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/162164.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/162164.php As part of its ongoing effort to support bipolar depression awareness and education, AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) is bringing The Bipolar Journey: Living With Bipolar Depression interactive exhibit to patients and caregivers across America. Those who have been touched by bipolar depression -- the depressive phase of bipolar disorder -- are encouraged to visit a nearby exhibit site and learn more about living with this disease and how to help manage it. Bipolar Sun, 16 Aug 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/160782.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/160782.php The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Saphris tablets (asenapine) to treat adults with schizophrenia, a chronic, severe and disabling brain disorder, and to treat bipolar I disorder in adults, a serious psychiatric disorder that causes shifts in a person's mood, energy, and ability to function. "Mental illnesses like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder can be devastating to patients and families, requiring lifelong treatment and therapy," said Thomas Laughren, M.D. Schizophrenia Sat, 15 Aug 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/160755.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/160755.php Schering-Plough Corporation (NYSE: SGP) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved SAPHRIS((R)) (asenapine) sublingual tablets for acute treatment of schizophrenia in adults and acute treatment of manic or mixed episodes associated with bipolar I disorder with or without psychotic features in adults. SAPHRIS can be used as a first-line treatment and is the first psychotropic drug to receive initial approval for both of these indications simultaneously. Bipolar Wed, 05 Aug 2009 10:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159924.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159924.php The number of Americans under care for depression and other mental illnesses nearly doubled between 1996 and 2006, and the overall cost of treating them jumped by nearly two-thirds, according to the latest News and Numbers from HHS' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. According to the analysis by the federal agency, the number of patients treated for mental disorders, including depression and bipolar disease, increased from 19 million to 36 million. Mental Health Fri, 31 Jul 2009 05:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159514.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159514.php One of the most well-known psychological tools is the Rorschach Inkblot Test. A viewer looks at ten inkblots, one at a time, and describes what they see. The rationale behind this test is the idea that certain aspects of the subject's personality will be exposed as they are interpreting the images, allowing for the possible diagnosis of various psychological disorders. Psychology / Psychiatry Fri, 31 Jul 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159397.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159397.php Schering-Plough Corporation (NYSE: SGP) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Psychopharmacologic Drugs Advisory Committee voted unanimously in favor of SAPHRIS(R) (asenapine) sublingual tablets as effective and safe for the acute treatment of manic or mixed episodes associated with bipolar I disorder in adults and in favor of use in acute treatment of schizophrenia in adults. Schizophrenia Thu, 30 Jul 2009 05:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159344.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159344.php A year ago, a study by Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University researchers reported that fewer than half the patients previously diagnosed with bipolar disorder received an actual diagnosis of bipolar disorder after using a comprehensive, psychiatric diagnostic interview tool -- the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID). In this follow-up study, the researchers have determined the actual diagnoses of those patients. Bipolar Wed, 29 Jul 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159104.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/159104.php A new study from Thomson Reuters found that patients with bipolar disorder were at greater risk for a wide range of medical conditions than a control group of patients with no mental health diagnoses. The study analyzed de-identified insurance claims for more than 600,000 Americans with employer-sponsored insurance. It is available here and an interactive graphic charting bipolar patients' risk of comorbid disorders is available here. Bipolar Wed, 08 Jul 2009 01:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156656.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156656.php The Stanford University School of Medicine will host its fifth annual Bipolar Education Day on July 25. Individuals with bipolar disorder, their families, caregivers, friends and interested community members are invited to attend. The free event will be held at the William R. Hewlett Teaching Center at 370 Serra St., located on the main campus. More than 5. Bipolar Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156241.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156241.php A trio of genome-wide studies - collectively the largest to date - has pinpointed a vast array of genetic variation that cumulatively may account for at least one third of the genetic risk for schizophrenia. One of the studies traced schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, in part, to the same chromosomal neighborhoods. "These new results recommend a fresh look at our diagnostic categories," said Thomas R. Insel, M.D. Schizophrenia Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156095.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156095.php A multi-national group of investigators, including a scientist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has discovered that nearly a third of the genetic basis of schizophrenia may be attributed to the cumulative actions of thousands of common genetic variants. The effects of each of these genetic changes, innocuous on its own, add up to a significant risk for developing both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Schizophrenia Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156114.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/156114.php A new study by a large international consortium found that many common genetic variants contribute up to a third of a person's risk of inheriting schizophrenia and many of the same DNA variations are also involved in bipolar disorder. While the study helps to explain the complexity of the genetic make up of these diseases it also suggests that developing a test to predict these diseases will take some time. Schizophrenia Tue, 30 Jun 2009 03:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/155818.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/155818.php New research from the US adds to mounting evidence that when diagnosing bipolar disorder in children doctors and clinicians should consider irritability as a possible symptom. The study, by researchers at the Bradley Hospital and The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, both in Rhode Island, and colleagues from other centers, is published online in the July issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. Bipolar Fri, 26 Jun 2009 02:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/155405.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/155405.php At the 8th International Conference on Bipolar Disorder this week in Pittsburgh, four distinguished individuals will be honored for their contributions to bipolar disorder research, education and service. Bipolar Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:00:00 PST http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/155346.php http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/155346.php A new study from Bradley Hospital and The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, as well as two other institutions, adds to mounting evidence that clinicians consider irritability as a symptom when diagnosing pediatric bipolar disorder. Bipolar