Psychiatry News

May 9, 2025

Top Headlines

Lab-on-a-Chip Devices Take Public Health Into Home

May 8, 2025 — Engineers created a new point-of-care test that measures cortisol in saliva to help doctors diagnose depression and ...

Discovery of Dopamine Receptors in a Previously Overlooked Part of the Brain Sheds Light on the Complex Circuitry for Anxiety and Depression

May 7, 2025 — Researchers have discovered distinct roles for two dopamine receptors located on nerve cells within the portion of the brain that controls approach vs. avoidance ...

Neighborhood Stress May Impact Kids' Brains -- And Increase Depression Risk

May 5, 2025 — Children who grow up in disadvantaged neighborhoods -- areas with higher levels of crime and deprivation, and lower access to community resources -- are at risk of developing depression, and new research may help to explain ...

How Is Handedness Linked to Neurological Disorders?

May 5, 2025 — The fact that left-handedness resp. mixed-handedness are strikingly common in patients with certain neurological disorders such as autism spectrum disorders is a frequently reported observation in medical practice. The reason why handedness is ...

Latest Headlines

updated 10:46pm EDT

Teens With Mental Health Conditions Use Social Media Differently Than Their Peers, Study Suggests

May 5, 2025 — One of the first studies in this area to use clinical-level diagnoses reveals a range of differences between young people with and without mental ...

New Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation Technique Shows Significant Reduction in Depression, Anxiety and PTSD Symptoms

Apr. 28, 2025 — New research shows non-invasive sound wave therapy can directly target deep brain regions, significantly reducing depression, anxiety, and PTSD ...

Depression and Other Mental Health Conditions Linked With Immune Response, Study Finds

Apr. 30, 2025 — Depression, schizophrenia and other mental health conditions affect 1 in 4 people in their lifetime, but mechanisms underlying these conditions are ...

How a Smartphone App Could Transform Mental Health Care

Apr. 23, 2025 — Smartphones may often feel like a source of stress, feeding us an endless stream of bad news and social comparison. But what if they could also be the solution? A team of researchers believes they ...

Reasons Why Anxiety and Depression Promote Low Self-Belief

Apr. 29, 2025 — Researchers have uncovered why individuals who experience anxiety and depression often struggle with persistent low ...

Gestational Diabetes Linked to ADHD in Children

Apr. 14, 2025 — A new study has found children born to mothers who experienced gestational diabetes (GDM) during pregnancy are more likely to develop attention-deficient hyperactive disorder (ADHD) and externalizing ...

What Links Cannabis Use and Psychosis? Researchers Point to Brain's Dopamine System

Apr. 9, 2025 — A new study found that people with cannabis use disorder (CUD) had elevated dopamine levels in a brain region associated with ...

Even Under Stress, Male-Female Pairs Had Each Other's Backs

Apr. 8, 2025 — When faced with a potential threat, mice often freeze in place. Moreover, when two animals are together, they typically freeze at the same time, matching each other's periods of immobility. In a new ...

Exposure to Wildfire Smoke Linked With Worsening Mental Health Conditions

Apr. 4, 2025 — Exposure to fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) from wildfire smoke was associated with increased visits to emergency departments (ED) for mental health conditions, according to a new ...

First Therapy Chatbot Trial Shows AI Can Provide 'Gold-Standard' Care

Mar. 27, 2025 — Researchers conducted the first clinical trial of an AI-powered therapy chatbot and found that, on average, people with diagnosed mental disorders experienced clinically significant improvements in ...

PET Imaging Confirms Direct Involvement of Dopamine in Cognitive Flexibility

Mar. 28, 2025 — Scientists have confirmed a neurobiochemical link between dopamine and cognitive flexibility. PET imaging shows that the brain increases dopamine production when completing cognitively demanding ...

Potential Risk Biomarkers Found for Schizophrenia Resulting from Cannabis Use

Mar. 21, 2025 — A new study has analyzed and compared the fatty acids in the blood of individuals with schizophrenia, of those with cannabis use disorder and of those with both diagnoses, with the aim of shedding ...

Nearly Half of Depression Diagnoses Could Be Considered Treatment-Resistant

Mar. 21, 2025 — Almost half of patients diagnosed with depression classify as being 'treatment-resistant' as new research suggests that many don't respond to multiple antidepressant ...

Part of the Genetic Risk for Schizophrenia Acts Through the Placenta

Mar. 20, 2025 — An international team has identified associations between modifications in the placenta and the risk of developing schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression ...

Worldwide Study Finds High Rates of Depression and Anxiety in People With Chronic Pain

Mar. 10, 2025 — A novel analysis of more than 375 published studies concluded that the association between chronic pain and rates of depression and anxiety is staggering. The study found that 40% of adults with ...

High Temperatures Could Affect Brain Function in Preadolescents

Mar. 6, 2025 — Exposure to high ambient temperatures is associated with lower connectivity in three brain networks in preadolescents, suggesting that heat may impact brain ...

Does Getting ADHD Drugs Via Telehealth Increase Addiction Risk?

Mar. 5, 2025 — A study of people who started ADHD stimulant treatment via telehealth vs in-person visits shows no difference in risk of new substance use disorders except for young adults age ...

The Art of Well-Being: Group Activities Shown to Ease Depression and Anxiety in Older Adults

Mar. 5, 2025 — Group arts interventions, such as painting, dance, or music, significantly reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety in older adults, offering a powerful alternative to traditional treatments. The ...

Don't Let This Stress You out

Mar. 3, 2025 — Having one traumatic experience is bad enough. If you've constantly experienced stress since before birth, you may be in for an especially tough time. Our emotions may be influenced by ...

ChatGPT on the Couch? How to Calm a Stressed-out AI

Mar. 3, 2025 — Distressing news and traumatic stories can cause stress and anxiety -- not only in humans, but these stories can also affect AI language models, such as ChatGPT. Researchers have now shown that these ...

Scientists Discover Key Protein in Resilience to Stress

Feb. 27, 2025 — When faced with chronic stress, why do some people develop anxiety and depressive symptoms while others show resilience? A protein that acts as a cannabinoid receptor and is present in the structure ...

'Loot Box' Virtual Rewards Associated With Gambling and Video Game Addiction

Feb. 19, 2025 — A new study of more than 1400 adults who gamble and play online video games has found loot box buying is associated with real-world gambling, video gaming addiction, and other mental health issues. ...

Scientists Reveal Gut Microbes' Hidden Role in Anxiety: Could Probiotics Be the Next Mental Health Breakthrough?

Feb. 5, 2025 — Could the key to easing anxiety be hidden in our gut? Scientists have discovered a crucial connection between gut microbes and anxiety-related behavior. Their research suggests that microbial ...

Listening for Multiple Mental Health Disorders

Feb. 4, 2025 — Researchers develop machine learning tools that screen for co-morbid anxiety disorders and major depressive disorder using acoustic voice signals. The team spoke to participants with and without ...

Advanced Brain Circuit-Mapping Technique Reveals New Anxiety Drug Target

Jan. 28, 2025 — Investigators have identified in a preclinical model a specific brain circuit whose inhibition appears to reduce anxiety without side effects. Their work suggests a new target for treating anxiety ...

People With Schizophrenia Have an Altered Ability to Visually Perceive Contrast

Jan. 28, 2025 — Schizophrenia is a serious mental disorder that affects around 1% of the world's population. Researchers have identified a deficit in contrast perception in people with schizophrenia. According ...

Patients With Anorexia Have Elevated Opioid Neurotransmitter Activity in the Brain

Jan. 27, 2025 — A study showed that changes in the functioning of opioid neurotransmitters in the brain may underlie ...

What Drives Mood Swings in Bipolar Disorder? Study Points to a Second Brain Clock

Jan. 27, 2025 — A brain rhythm working in tandem with the body's natural sleep-wake cycle may explain why bipolar patients alternate between mania and depression, according to new research. A new study marks a ...

Exploring Decision Making in People With Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Jan. 24, 2025 — Although obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) can be treated, research has shown that people with the disorder tend to have a lower quality of life than neurotypical people. Many struggle to achieve ...

Researchers Track Sharp Increase in Diagnoses for Sedative, Hypnotic and Anxiety Use Disorder in Young Adults

Jan. 23, 2025 — The prevalence of diagnosed disorders from recurrent use of sedative, hypnotic and anti-anxiety medications in adolescents and young adults has increased sharply since 2001, according to researchers. ...