The associations among psychotic experiences (i.e., hallucinations and delusions), trauma exposure, and posttraumatic stress symptoms are complex and multidirectional. Using network analysis to understand how psychotic experiences and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) relate to one another may identify new interventional targets to treat comorbidity and its underlying pathological processes. This study aimed to use network analysis to examine the associations among psychotic experiences; negative symptoms of psychosis; and symptoms of PTSD, anxiety, and depression.
In the general population, low self-esteem has been linked with poorer mental and physical health. This systematic literature review aimed to summarise and evaluate the findings of studies that examined self-esteem in adults with intellectual disabilities and links with mental health outcomes. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
Growing evidence suggests that community-based interventions may be effective for anxiety and depression. This study aimed to describe studies of community interventions delivered to adults and/or young people, either in person or online, evaluated in randomised controlled trials and provide an indication as to their effectiveness, acceptability, quality of data and where possible, mechanisms of action. We included interventions delivered at and/or by museums, art galleries, libraries, gardens, music groups/choirs and sports clubs.
Depression is a major source of symptoms and disability. In adults, maladaptive coping (usually characterized as personality dysfunction) has been shown to be associated with a depression diagnosis and poorer depression outcome. As adults with maladaptive coping difficulties are more prone to depression, we hypothesized that children with childhood disorders that involve poor coping would increase the risk of later developing depressive disorders. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
Cyberbullying is becoming increasingly widespread as individuals use technology more widely and frequently. Recent studies have shown a growing vulnerability for cyberbullying and cybervictimization, particularly in the adolescent population. We argue that dysfunctional metacognitions, which have been found to be prominent in various psychiatric disorders, may also play a role in predicting cyberbullying and cybervictimization over and above a variety of established factors including daily Internet use, social media use, depression, and anxiety. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
This research provides reassuring evidence that DBS can have long-term benefits. This intervention is still only suitable for those with severe ‘treatment-resistant depression’, due to the highly invasive nature of the surgical procedure and the risk of complications.
Too late to be included in this review, NICE Guideline Depression in adults, was issued in 2022 with more complete tapering information, including an exponential taper to be adjusted to the tolerance of the individual patient. It advised clinicians “slowly reduce the dose to zero in a step-wise fashion, at each step prescribing a proportion of the previous dose” and “consider using smaller reductions”. While this is still not very specific, it is a significant improvement over the guidance reviewed in this paper.
Individuals with physical comorbidities and polypharmacy may be at higher risk of depression relapse, however, they are not included in the ‘high risk of relapse’ group for whom longer antidepressant treatment durations are recommended. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
Depression is common in individuals with endocrine-metabolic disorders and vice versa, and a better understanding of the underlying factors contributing to the comorbidity of these disorders is needed. This study investigated the familial coaggregation of depression and endocrine-metabolic disorders and estimated the contribution of genetic and environmental factors to their co-occurrence. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
Editorial- Special issue includes a meta-ethnography of mindfulness-based CBT for peope with major depression. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
Difficulty in accessing specific memories, referred to as reduced memory specificity or overgeneral memory (OGM), has been established as a marker of clinical depression. However, it is not clear if this deficit persists following the remission of depressive episodes. The current study involved a systematic review and meta-analysis of empirical studies with the aim of establishing whether remitted depression was associated with retrieving fewer specific and more overgeneral autobiographical memories. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
Few studies have examined sensory processing in mood disorders, including depression. The interactions between sensory inputs and adaptive behavior have yet to be clarified in this pathology. We assessed sensory profiles among people with major depressive disorder (MDD) with the Adult/Adolescent Sensory Profile (AASP) scale and determined whether sensory processing patterns were associated with clinical variables such as anxiety, depression, psychomotor retardation or self-esteem. To read the full article, choose Open Athens “Institutional Login” and search for “Midlands Partnership”.
The research implications of the study highlight the need for co-production with young people when understanding perfectionism. Better understanding the views of young people would help to tailor more effective, relevant interventions.
The clinical implications give insight into the maintaining factors of perfectionism that could be targeted using CBT. For example, targeting dichotomous thinking, or behaviours like avoidance. It also highlighted the value of the group setting. Services should ensure that when offering CBT, a variety of therapeutic modalities are available to individuals.
The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic is associated with worsening mental health among young adults, but further research is necessary to quantify the associations with depression and anxiety. Using Monitoring the Future data (N = 1244 young adults, modal age: 19, Fall 2020 supplement), we examined internalizing symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire-8 and Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale-7 separately), dividing the sample into those without clinically significant scores, significant scores but minimal pandemic-attributed symptoms, and significant scores with substantial pandemic-attributed symptoms. Logistic regression analyses linked demographic factors, pandemic-related experiences, and coping methods to symptom groups.
Amotivation is a typical feature in major depressive disorders and refers to individuals exhibiting reduced willingness to exert effort for rewards. However, the motivation pattern when deciding whether to exert effort for self versus others in people with depression remains unclear. We conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging study and employed an adapted Effort-Expenditure for Rewards Task in subthreshold depressive (SD) participants (n = 33) and healthy controls (HC) (n = 32). Open access article- no login required
This systematic review provided a comprehensive and up-to-date synthesis of a large volume of data, which has recently emerged since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a unique study, offering pooled prevalence estimates and focusing on doctors specifically as a high-risk group of the health workforce cohort. However, there was a wide variation in point prevalence and pooled prevalence estimates had broad confidence intervals.
This meta-analysis is very relevant for those working within mental health services and delivering mental health interventions with clients or community members. It suggests that transdiagnostic mental health interventions should be considered as an effective way of treating anxiety and depression, at least in the short term, as they might have an edge over other treatments, especially when treating co-morbidity or mixed anxiety and depression symptoms.
Concludes that there is little uptake of psychological interventions for depression. Strategies currently in development that could change this include single session interventions and task sharing which involves using lay counsellors to deliver the intervention. Digital interventions could improve access to treatment and have shown some positive outcomes.