Mental health

Children and teens with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who were treated with the herb St John’s wort did not have any greater improvement in ADHD symptoms compared to those who received placebo, according to a new study.

Narcolepsy and sleep apnoea were topics broached at a recent Sleep Disorder Symposium in Dublin supported by Cephalon, reports Gary Culliton.

Dr Catherine Crowe, a Consultant in Sleep Disorders Medicine at the Mater Private Hospital in Dublin, spoke about the ‘Social Aspects of Narcolepsy’.

The American Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has approved the use of modafinil (Provigil) for the management of residual excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) in patients with obstructive sleep Apnoea/hypopnoea syndrome (OSAHS) on nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), Dr John O’Reilly, a consultant at the Regional Sleep Centre at University Hospital, Aintree, Liverpool, told the Symposium.

Prof Emmanuel Mignot of the Centre for Narcolepsy at Stanford University in California reviewed clinical aspects of hypersomnia and narcolepsy and especially the diagnosis and treatment of narcolepsy, at the Sleep Disorder Symposium on March 28 and 29, at Dublin’s Four Seasons Hotel, which was supported by Cephalon.

A properly supervised trial eliminating colours and preservatives from the diet of hyperactive children should considered a part of the standard treatment, according to a leading Australian expert.

Dr Aine Tubridy writes on the wide-ranging, negative effects that panic attacks can have on the lives of those affected by them and how professional psychotherapy can provide an effective treatment.

Dr Ross Dunne and Dr Michael McDonough report on the burden of anxiety disorders and why we should all be paying more attention to the most common mental health problems which present to doctors.

Taking the antidepressant citalopram before beginning treatment for head and neck cancer may help prevent depression during therapy, according to results of a new pilot study.

Prof Patricia Casey and Dr Divina Pillay look at the rising rates of panic and anxiety disorders in the first of a four-part Irish Medical Times series on panic disorders.