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Psychiatric Times By Peggy Peck Feb 27, 2007 ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 27 -- The FDA has approved lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (Vyvanse), formerly known as NRP104, for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. The amphetamine, to be marketed by Shire, is said to have limited abuse potential, but it was designated Schedule II by the DEA. Shire plc said in a statement that the drug has a lower potential for abuse than other amphetamines used to treat ADHD. "The label we received with the approval letter includes information about the extended duration of effect and abuse-related drug liking characteristics of Vyvanse, which illustrate benefits that differentiate this compound from other ADHD medicines," said Matthew Emmens, Shire's CEO. Data from phase II and phase III clinical trials demonstrated statistically significant improvements in ADHD symptoms for patients ages six to 12 years treated with lisdexamfetamine compared to patients treated with placebo. These studies demonstr...

On the The Oprah Show last week she had a panel of people talking about "The Secret". This movie, The Secret , and book was created by Australian Rhonda Byrne, and she says that if you follow its philosophy, you can create the life you want—whether that means getting out of debt, finding a more fulfilling job or even falling in love. Rhonda defines The Secret as the law of attraction, which is the principle that "like attracts like." Rhonda calls it "the most powerful law in the universe," and says it is working all the time. "What we do is we attract into our lives the things we want, and that is based on what we're thinking and feeling," Rhonda says. The principle explains that we create our own circumstances by the choices we make in life. And the choices we make are fueled by our thoughts—which means our thoughts are the most powerful things we have here on earth. See more about the show at the link above... Sound a little like Cogntiv...

By Crystal Phend Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Jan 02, 2007 ATLANTA, Jan. 2 -- Binge drinking is the most common way that high schoolers consume alcohol and is tied to other risky behaviors, according to a national survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Among the more than 15,000 teens surveyed, nearly half reported drinking alcohol in the prior month, and more than 60% of those who drank had binged on five or more drinks, said Jacqueline W. Miller, M.D., of the CDC here, and colleagues. These "alarming" findings call for stronger interventions to reduce both youth drinking and excessive drinking in the general population, they said in the January issue of Pediatrics. "Pediatricians and family practice physicians should be aware that most of their high school-aged patients drink alcohol and usually do so to the point of intoxication," they wrote. "Some studies have sho...

Results from a large-scale national survey suggest that binge-eating disorder is more prevalent than both anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. The study, published in the February 1, 2007, issue of Biological Psychiatry , was based on data gleaned from the NIMH-funded National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R), a nationally representative survey conducted between February 2001 and December 2003. Anorexia nervosa is characterized by emaciation, a relentless pursuit of thinness and extremely disturbed eating behaviors, such as deliberate self-starvation. Bulimia nervosa is characterized by recurrent and frequent episodes of eating unusually large amounts of food (binging) during which a person feels a lack of control over the eating, followed by purging behavior such as vomiting, fasting, use of diuretics (water pills), or excessive exercise. Binge-eating disorder is characterized by recurrent binge-eating episodes during which a person feels a loss of control similar to bulimia. ...

Provided by: Associated Press Written by: LUNDSEY TANNER Feb. 5, 2007 CHICAGO (AP) - New government figures show a surprising increase in youth suicides after a decade of decline, and some mental health experts think a drop in use of antidepressant drugs may be to blame. The suicide rate climbed 18 per cent from 2003 to 2004 for Americans under age 20, from 1,737 deaths to 1,985. Most suicides occurred in older teens, according to the data - the most current to date from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By contrast, the suicide rate among 15-to 19-year-olds fell in previous years, from about 11 per 100,000 in 1990 to 7.3 per 100,000 in 2003. Suicides were the only cause of death that increased for children through age 19 from 2003-04, according to a CDC report released Monday. See More...........

By Arline Kaplan (Psychiatric Times) January 2007, Vol. XXIV, No. 1 Intermittent explosive disorder (IED) is not yet on the radar screens of many psychiatrists, but it is more prevalent than panic disorder and warrants extensive research and attention, 2 experts on IED said recently. In exclusive interviews, Ronald Kessler, PhD, professor of health care policy at Harvard Medical School, and Emil Coccaro, MD, Ellen C. Manning professor and chair of the University of Chicago's department of psychiatry, discussed their recently released study of the prevalence and correlates of IED1 and current as well as planned treatment research. Depending on how it is defined, IED affects between 5.4% and 7.3% of adults (11.5 to 16 million Americans) in their lifetimes. The prevalence study, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, was based on data from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication, a national representative, face-to-face household survey of 9282 US adults aged 18 years a...