Neurology Center

The proportion of Americans using antidepressants in a given year nearly doubled from 5.8% in 1996 to 10.1% in 2005, according to a paper just published: National Patterns in AntidepressantMedication Treatment, by Mark Olfson and Steven Marcus.That means about 15 million more Americans were medicated in '05 than a decade previously. A huge increase in anyone's book. But the doubling in antidepressant...

Last week, I wrote about a paper finding that the mosquito repellent chemical, DEET, inhibits an important enzyme, cholinesterase. If DEET were toxic to humans, this finding might explain why.But it isn't - tens of millions of people use DEET safely every year, and there's no reason to think that it is dangerous unless it's used completely inappropriately. That didn't stop this laboratory finding...

It's a cliché, but it's true - "schizophrenia genes" are the Holy Grail of modern psychiatry.Were they to be discovered, such genes would provide clues towards a better understanding of the biology of the disease, and that could lead directly to the development of better medications. It might also allow "genetic counselling" for parents concerned about their children's risk of schizophrenia.Perhaps...

Over at Bad Science, Ben Goldacre decries an article about a spurious "study", lifted straight from a corporate press-release, in his own newspaper The Guardian:On Monday we printed a news article about a “report” “published” by Nuffield Health, headlined “No sex please, we’re British and we’re lazier than ever”. “This is the damning conclusion of a major new report published today,” says the press...

The Templeton Foundation is offering $4,000,000 to fund research into "Positive Neuroscience". The idea seems to be put some neuro into Positive Psychology. Aspiring neuroscientists are invited to submit proposals for...projects that apply tools of neuroscience to positive psychological concepts in the following core areas: Virtue, strength, and positive emotion:...

Modern psychiatry is an alphabet soup of acronyms. Sometimes it seems like there are almost as many as there are drugs. This can be confusing. So, here's a quick guide to what they really mean.Please add any of your own in the comments!SSRI - Sexual Stimulation Required Increased(*)Also, Suicides? Suppress Report Immediately!(*)Also, Stopped Suddenly - Regret Imminent?(*)NRI - No Real Impact?(*)Also, Nix Relevant Information(*)NASSA (mirtazapine) - Never Again Slim; Sleep Alot.(*)Also, Nighttime,...

Watch out! The BBC report that - Deet bug repellent 'toxic worry' While The Telegraph are even more concerned -Insect repellent Deet is bad for your nerves, claim scientists This is in reference to a new paper about the widely-used insect repellent DEET. The BBC, as usual, performed slightly better than the Telegraph here. They included quotes from two experts making it clear that the...

According to CNN, the kids in Hong Kong are all taking ketamine ("the horse tranquilizer") nowadays - although we're not given much in the way of statistics.Ketamine is a fascinating molecule. On the street, it's a drug, naturally. High doses produce a state of dissociative unconciousness affectionately called the "K-hole", while lower doses have a sedative and mild hallucinogenic effect which goes...