Mental Health

Study finds people who are socially isolated experience more pain after hip replacement
Could being socially isolated affect how well you do and the amount of pain you experience after surgery? Researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) set out to test this hypothesis. They found that people who lacked good social ties were much more likely to experience serious, ongoing pain following total hip replacement surgery two or more years after the procedure. Eurekalert!

Regular cocaine and cannabis use may trigger addictive behaviours
New cocaine and cannabis research reveals that regular cannabis users have increased levels of impulsive behaviour. It had previously been argued that this increased impulsivity after cannabis administration was only experienced by occasional users, but that regular users were no longer affected in this way. Published in the British Journal of Pharmacology, the results provide evidence for how drug use may trigger addictive behaviours. MedicalXpress

Moderate exercise not only treats, but prevents depression
Physical activity is being increasingly recognized as an effective tool to treat depression. PhD candidate George Mammen's review published in the October issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine has taken the connection one step further, finding that moderate exercise can actually prevent episodes of depression in the long term. MedicalXpress

A potential new class of fast-acting antidepressant
More than 1 in 10 Americans take antidepressants, but these medications can take weeks—and for some patients, months—before they begin to alleviate symptoms. Now, scientists from the University of Chicago have discovered that selectively blocking a serotonin receptor subtype induces fast-acting antidepressant effects in mice, indicating a potential new class of therapeutics for depression. The work was published Oct. 29 in Molecular Psychiatry. Eurekalert!

Imaging study shows dopamine dysfunction not the main cause of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
Patients with ADHD showed significant impairments in attentional performance compared with healthy controls; interestingly Ritalin also improved performance in the patients and in some healthy controls as well. However, dopamine receptor levels in an area of the brain called the striatum were similar in the two groups and the effects of Ritalin on dopamine levels in the two groups were also equivalent. MedicalXpress

Study shows children of Holocaust survivors react differently to trauma
Last year, junior investigator Dr. Sharon Dekel and Prof. Zahava Solomon of TAU's Bob Shapell School of Social Work found that individuals with Holocaust-survivor parents may be less likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder in the wake of their own traumas. In a study published in the Journal of Traumatic Stress, the researchers set out to see if so-called second-generation Holocaust survivors also undergo more post-traumatic "growth." MedicalXpress