Psychiatric Times Vol 20 No 3

The field of schizophrenia recently has seen remarkable progress in the understanding and treatment of this disabling condition. Dr. Buckley provides highlights of this special report.

Poetry of the Times

While housing problems for the mentally ill are usually associated with patients receiving public care, private patients also face obstacles over obtaining and keeping adequate housing. What are the issues, and what can agencies do to ensure all patients, regardless of socioeconomic status, have adequate housing?

With the seemingly impending war with Iraq, Dr. Stone revisits the Marxist-based film The Battle of Algiers and is surprised to find Islamic fundamentalism prominently featured throughout. Looking back, he finds nothing in the director's or writer's notes, or in critics' writings on the film, to indicate they were aware of its presence-the film was viewed through the context of the time. Are we still making this deadly error in dealing with Muslim nations?

Schizophrenia is a devastating psychiatric disorder that affects 1% of the population worldwide. Patients often suffer their first psychotic outbreak in their late teens or early 20s. Despite advances in neuroleptic drugs, many patients' symptoms remain refractory to treatment, with recurrent episodes of auditory and visual hallucinations, bizarre delusions, depression, and social withdrawal that can last an entire lifetime.

The World Trade Center attack changed the face of the United States and of psychiatry. Men and women of the cloth and of the clinic came together to care for the stricken masses. Yet, members of the clergy do not always refer congregants who exhibit duress to the psychiatrist, nor do psychiatrists refer patients to the clergy. What keeps these two fields apart? What is best for your patient?

Although late-onset psychosis is not as common as the early-onset variety, it can still pose difficulties in diagnosing and treating patients. How are patients with late-onset psychosis different from those who have early-onset, and what sorts of issues should clinicians be aware of?

The atypical antipsychotics have become the treatment of choice for patients with psychotic and other behavioral disorders. However, case reports, retrospective studies and epidemiological data suggest that these medications may be associated with new-onset type 2 diabetes and diabetic ketoacidosis.