Psychiatry Research

The COVID-19 pandemic had substantial impact on healthcare systems across the globe, including psychiatric services. Use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), a lifesaving intervention for severe mental illness, was reported to have declined during the pandemic in several countries, but nationwide data remain scarce. Using nationwide data from the Danish National Patient Register, we examined all ECT treatments administered in Denmark from September 2019 to May 2025. Weekly treatment numbers were ...

AimSurgical interventions such as deep brain stimulation (DBS) have demonstrated efficacy for severe treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder (TR-OCD) internationally, but surgical treatment has yet to be implemented in Japan. One factor hindering progress is uncertainty regarding domestic clinical demand, so a nationwide survey of psychiatrists was conducted to clarify their perceptions of OCD surgery. We analysed the data with the aim of identifying factors associated with the accepta...

BackgroundLight plays a critical role in mental health, as the primary input to the circadian system, which regulates mood, energy, and the sleep-wake cycle. Altered light sensitivity is a potential mechanism in circadian-associated mental disorders. MethodsActigraphy-derived sleep, physical activity, and circadian rhythm correlates of the pupillary light reflex were explored in young people with emerging mental disorders. Participants were 27 healthy controls (Mean age=25.67 {+/-} 2.83, 52% fe...

Background At present, there are no approved pharmacological treatments for people at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR-P). We sought to assess the acceptability of cannabidiol (CBD): a promising candidate treatment for this population. Methods CHR-P individuals completed a survey which assessed their views on the acceptability of CBD, its expected effectiveness and side effects, and on formulation preferences. Results The sample comprised 55 CHR-P individuals (24.3 years and 69% female). Mo...

BackgroundForensic psychiatric services are expanding in many countries, and discharging patients from secure hospitals relies on accurate estimates of risk of adverse outcomes. Novel evidence-based tools for estimating one key risk, violent reoffending, have been developed in recent years. We aimed to externally validate one new tool, FoVOx, in forensic psychiatric patients sentenced to treatment, and to develop an updated model (FoVOx2), incorporating additional clinical predictors. MethodsUs...

BackgroundSleep disturbance is a core feature of bipolar disorder (BD) and often precedes mood recurrence, particularly in youth. Although actigraphy provides objective sleep measurement, it is limited by cost and monitoring duration. Passive smartphone-based mobile sensing offers a scalable alternative, but its validity in youths with BD is unclear. MethodsAnalyses included adolescents and young adults (ages 14-25) with BD-I/II from the PROMPT-BD study with at least four days of concurrent act...

KEY POINTSO_ST_ABSQuestionC_ST_ABSDid changes in mental health symptoms from pre-COVID-19 to during the pandemic differ by sex or gender? FindingsIn this systematic review and meta-analysis study of findings from 27 unique cohorts, changes from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic in mental health symptoms, including general mental health, anxiety, depression, and stress, were not statistically significantly different by sex or gender. MeaningThere were not likely substantial sex and gender ...

ObjectivesElectroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) is an effective treatment for bipolar disorder, particularly in severe acute cases or for illness resistant to pharmacotherapy. However, the risk of relapse following ECT is high, necessitating intervention to reduce this risk. Based on findings from ECT studies in unipolar depression and its well-known mood-stabilizing properties, it is likely that lithium treatment may reduce the risk of relapse of bipolar disorder following ECT. Therefore, we conduct...

ObjectiveTo analyze the structure of mental disorders in children in the outpatient practice of a specialized mental health center for optimization of care organization for this patient category. MethodsA retrospective analysis of medical records of 23 children (out of 44 patients) at the Insight Mental Health Center (Dushanbe, Tajikistan) was conducted for the period from December 9, 2025, to January 8, 2026. Diagnosis was performed according to ICD-10 criteria using standardized instruments: ...

Major depressive disorder (MDD) involves dysregulated neuroimmune, metabolic, and oxidative stress (NIMETOX) pathways. Recently, it was shown that NIMETOX pathways should be evaluated in MDD patients stratified for metabolic syndrome (MetS). The current study aims to characterize the metabolic hormone and adipokine profiles of Chinese MDD patients stratified for MetS and to delineate their associations with overall severity of depression (OSOD), suicidal ideation (SI), recurrence of illness (ROI...

BackgroundNeuropsychological deficits are common in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and may influence functional and treatment outcomes. Only a few studies have effectively targeted these deficits, with most failing to show broad transfer of training. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of an integrated cognitive control training (ICCT) program on neuropsychological functioning in OCD patients and assess related changes in clinical and socio-occupational functions. MethodA single-grou...

BackgroundIn 2020, Oregon became the first U.S. state to establish a regulated framework for adults to access psilocybin services using naturally-derived mushroom products. No studies have examined mental health outcomes among individuals receiving psilocybin in this context. AimsTo evaluate changes in self-reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, and well-being 30-days post-psilocybin session under the Oregon state-regulated model , and document session-related adverse events and doses consum...

IntroductionSepsis is a life-threatening ailment caused by an exaggerated immune response to infection that poses a major health problem, with increasing prevalence, high costs, and poor outcomes. Improved outcomes are seen in patients when providers follow the Surviving Sepsis Campaign recommended clinical practice guidelines for identifying and treating sepsis using a 3-hour and 6-hour bundle after sepsis is suspected. Previous research has shown patients with mental health issues receive wors...

ImportanceLarge language models (LLMs) have demonstrated diagnostic potential in several medical specialties, but their application to psychiatry - where diagnosis relies heavily on clinical judgment, narrative interpretation, and reasoning under uncertainty - remains insufficiently evaluated. ObjectiveTo evaluate diagnostic accuracy and clinician-judged reasoning quality of multiple large language models using psychiatric case vignettes. DesignMixed-methods evaluation study of diagnostic accu...

ImportanceAs the percentage of young people in the United States identifying as transgender and gender diverse increases, more youth face identity-linked social and structural stigma and discrimination. Little is known about the impact of stigma on psychotic-like experiences in gender diverse youth. ObjectiveTo assess the impact of bullying victimization and state-level policies on psychotic-like experiences among gender diverse youth. DesignIn this prospective cohort study, cross-sectional an...

Individuals with psychiatric disorders have significantly higher mortality rates than the general population. Despite identifying risk factors, few attempts have been made to systematically use this information to stratify mortality risk. To address this gap, we developed and externally validated a risk prediction model using national healthcare and social register data from two countries. Nationwide register data were used to create a Swedish cohort (n=530,201) for model development and a Finni...

BackgroundAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is frequently associated with speech and language difficulties, yet empirical data from Central Asian countries remain scarce. This study examined the association between a diagnosis of childhood autism (ICD-10: F84.0) and the presence of speech development difficulties in a clinical sample from Tajikistan MethodA retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted using clinical records of 85 patients (36 with F84.0; 49 with other psychiatric diagnoses) a...

ObjectivesTrauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) is the established first-line treatment for paediatric posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but access to evidence-based care remains limited. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a therapist-guided, 12-week, internet-delivered TF-CBT (iTF-CBT) programme for adolescents with PTSD, and to explore preliminary changes in PTSD symptoms. DesignSingle-group feasibility trial. SettingSave the Children, Swede...

Numerous studies have shown that adults with depression have distinct oculomotor alterations during saccade tasks, but whether similar alterations occur in adolescents is largely unknown. The purpose of this study was to test if eye-tracking during a structured saccade task could distinguish a group of adolescents with depression from healthy controls. We hypothesized that, due to overlapping circuitry between depression pathology and the oculomotor system, adolescents with depression would show...

BackgroundUp to one-third of medical inpatients experience clinically relevant mental distress, yet many remain untreated. Stepped and collaborative care (SCC) models may improve access to mental health care, but predictors of service uptake are unclear. We examined patient- and ward-level predictors of psychosomatic-psychiatric consultation (PPC). MethodsWe analyzed data from SomPsyNet, a stepped-wedge cluster randomized trial targeting SOMatic inpatients across three Swiss tertiary hospitals,...