Older adults can present with anxiety or worries about physical health (illness, changes in vision or hearing), cognitive difficulties, finances, and changes in life status (widowhood, care-giving responsibilities, retirement). Clinicians need to be aware that older adults may deny psychological symptoms of anxiety (fear, worry) but endorse similar emotions with different words (worries, concerns). More>>

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the major cause of death and disability among young adults. In spite of preventive measures, the incidence of a TBI associated with motor vehicle accidents, falls, assault, and high-contact sports continues to be alarmingly high and constitutes a major public health concern. In addition, the recent military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have resulted in a large number of persons with blast injuries and brain trauma. Taking into account that cognitive and... More>>

The ocurrence and severity of anxiety disorders have been correlated with fluctuations in female sex steroid levels in both epidemiological and experimental studies. 1-5 Female reproductive hormones play a role not only in the development and course of anxiety disorders but also in treatment response. More>>

Anxiety disorders are some of the most common mental health problems that confront clinicians, either as a primary diagnosis or as comorbid conditions. More>>

In part 1 of this column ( Psychiatric Times, November 2007, page 13), I reviewed research findings of the most substantiated nonpharmacological and integrative treatments for anxiety, such as kava-kava, L-theanine, applied relaxation, yoga, meditation and mindfulness training, virtual reality graded exposure therapy, and biofeedback training. In this part, I discuss less substantiated but promising nonconventional approaches, including dietary changes, supplementation with l-tryptophan... More>>

A recent longitudinal study examined the potential relationship between social anxiety disorder during adolescence and young adulthood and the subsequent development of depression. 1 More>>

Patients with chronic pain and head injury frequently have comorbid anxiety and depressive disorders, with depressive disorders appearing to be more predominant. A number of studies show that depressive spectrum illness develops in 40% to 80% of patients with chronic pain; in a majority of these cases, the mood disorder is caused by chronic pain. More>>

Comorbidity of psychiatric syndromes is quite common—in a 12-month period, almost 50% of adults in the United States with any psychiatric disorder had 2 or more disorders. More>>

Almost one third of US mental health care costs (approximately $50 billion) go toward the treatment of anxiety disorders. Conventional pharmacological treatments for anxiety are often beneficial but have limited efficacy. A meta-analysis of high-quality studies concluded that the efficacy of conventional drug treatments for anxiety disorders varies widely depending on the core symptom being treated. More>>

MONTREAL -- Vivid dreams of babies in peril are common to pregnant women and newly delivered mothers, often inspiring wakefulness and a postpartum need to check on the infant. More>>