Valuable Tips For Helping People Suffering From Delusions

Delusions are health disorders characterized by fake beliefs, which are far away from the reality. Also known as paranoid disorder, delusion can occur with a number of dominant themes such as jealous, erotomanic, somatic, or grandiose themes. Few patients experience different kinds of delusions, whereas others undergo unspecified delusions without any dominant theme.

Chronic delusional disorders often interfere with our social life but do not have much effect on our occupational or intellectual functioning. For instance, believing that someone is possessed by spirits may be accepted by some people who believe n Pentecostalism or Voodooism, but others would view this as a delusion. Another example of a delusion is believing that you are captain of Australian Cricket Team when actually you are not.

People who suffer from delusions hold them with full conviction and it becomes extremely difficult for carers to alter their delusion by presenting facts or using reasoning or logic with them.

Major Causes of Delusional Disorders

One of the most important causes behind delusion disorder is presence of certain early childhood experiences related to authoritarian family structure. This means that a person with a sensitive personality is more likely to suffer from delusions in comparison to others.

Besides this, some medical conditions such as aging, deafness, chronic alcoholism, or head injury can also increase the risk of a person developing delusional disorder. Sometimes, the irrational belief of people caused due to delusions can post a huge threat to others around him, as well as himself. The greater the rage of the patient, more will be the risk of suicide or violent behavior.

Caring for People with Delusion Disorder

If someone in your family or someone around you is suffering from delusion disorder, there are certain things that can be done to help him / her.

• Arrange to get the patient's medications reviewed and organize to get his / her mental health assessment done.

• The cultural background of a person plays an extremely important role in shaping the way in which symptoms of mental disorder are expressed. Thus, it is very important to take the background of a person into account while formulating the care plan for a delusion patient.

• When carrying out initial assessment, encourage the patient to describe his / her delusion and ask any relevant question related to the delusion to obtain the required details.

• Try to validate all parts of the described delusion which are real. For instance, according to the situation, one might say, 'Yes, I saw the doctor at the nurse's station, but I didn't hear him speak about you.

• Do not try to force the person to believe that what he / she is thinking is incorrect. Instead, respect his / her viewpoint, irrespective of whether you agree with it or not. Also, provide your own understanding of the situation and discuss patiently with him / her.

• Even if a patient directs accuses at you, do not take it personally.

• Try to recognize the triggers leading to delusions such as anxiety, stress, or some other emotion.

• Promote the techniques of solving the problem by helping the patient figure out ways through which he / she can cope up with issues that are causing the delusions.

• Encourage the patient to participate as much as possible in related based activities.

Over time and as the person suffering from delusions realizes this they will often learn techniques to cope with them and mentally push them away. From a Carer's point of view it would be helpful if information groups can be found in the area and either/or or preferably both (not necessarily together) go to these groups to get an understanding of what delusions are, how people cope with them and get some medical advice.

Kaye Dennan is the author of an ebook 'Carer Coping Strategies'. Kaye has been a carer for 10 years and has been a Carers' Support group facilitator for 3 years. To read more about mental health carer's coping strategies or for more insight into mental health carer problems visit http://schizophrenia-carers.com/

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Cholesterol-lowering drugs may help prevent recurrent strokes in younger people

ScienceDaily (Aug. 1, 2011) — New research indicates cholesterol lowering drugs known as statins may help prevent future strokes among young people who have already had a stroke. The study is published in the August 2, 2011, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

"Because the cause of stroke in young people can be hard to identify, cholesterol-lowering drugs are often not used to prevent further strokes or vascular problems," said study author Jukka Putaala, MD, PhD, with the Helsinki University Central Hospital in Helsinki, Finland. "This study suggests that the drugs should be considered even when the cause of the stroke is unknown and the cholesterol levels are not high."

For the study, researchers looked at the medical records of 215 people between the ages of 15 and 49 who experienced a first stroke called an ischemic stroke and were then followed for an average of nine years.

One-third of the participants had taken a statin at some point after their stroke. Of the 36 people who continuously took a statin, no one had a second stroke or other vascular problem. Of the 36 people who took a statin at some point after their stroke, four people, or 11 percent, had a second stroke or other vascular problem. Of the 143 people who never took a statin drug, 29 people, or 20 percent, had a second stroke or other vascular problem.

The study found that those who were treated with a statin at any time after the stroke were 77 percent less likely to experience another stroke or vascular problems compared to those not treated with a statin at all. The results were the same after adjusting for factors such as age, high blood pressure, and taking high blood pressure medication.

"While the study may be limited by the small number of people who were treated with a statin, at the very least, young adults who have experienced a stroke for unknown reasons should be considered for treatment with cholesterol-lowering drugs," said Putaala.

The study was supported by the Helsinki University Central Hospital, the Finnish Medical Foundation, the Finnish Brain Foundation and the Emil Aaltonen Foundation.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by American Academy of Neurology.

Journal Reference:

J. Putaala, E. Haapaniemi, M. Kaste, T. Tatlisumak. Statins after ischemic stroke of undetermined etiology in young adults. Neurology, 2011; 77 (5): 426 DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e318227b1c2

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here sciencedaily.com

Drug may increase cognition for people with Down syndrome

ScienceDaily (Aug. 1, 2011) — A University of Colorado School of Medicine scientist is completing a major clinical trial on a drug that could boost cognitive function in those with Down syndrome, significantly improving their quality of life and representing a potential milestone in research on this genetic condition.

"We are hoping to enhance memory and learning in those with Down syndrome," said Alberto Costa, MD, PhD, an associate professor of medicine and the neuroscientist leading the effort. "We have been studying this drug for three years and are now ready to analyze the data on our trial. Our team at the University of Colorado and Children's Hospital Colorado expects to have the results in the next two or three months."

Costa, whose work was recently chronicled in New York Times Magazine, is testing the drug memantine, currently used to relieve symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, in 39 people with Down syndrome. About half received the drug and the others a placebo. In 2007, Costa demonstrated that memantine could improve memory function in mice with Down syndrome.

And now, for the first time, he is taking a drug effective in the treatment of learning and memory deficits in mice with Down syndrome and applying it to humans, a move described by the New York Times as "a milestone in the history of Down syndrome research."

Costa is no disinterested researcher. His 16-year-old daughter Tyche -- named for the Greek goddess of Fortune -- has Down syndrome. Like others with the condition, she faces the specter of a steady decline in mental functioning as she gets older and a roughly 20 percent chance of getting Alzheimer's in her 50's. After that diagnosis, death is often just five years away.

"I feel I am racing the clock to find something that will at least keep her functioning at the level she is at now," Costa said. "As they age, parts of their brain will shrink and their functions will diminish."

Costa is actively pursuing links between Down and Alzheimer's disease. He says babies born with Down often carry the biological markers for Alzheimer's.

"They have the disease from the get go," he said.

Costa says the world is awash in false assumptions about Down syndrome ranging from distortions on life expectancy to educational limitations. In fact, depending on the severity of their condition, those with Down can live into their 70s, attend college, live independently and hold down jobs.

"If we are successful, it will increase hope and expectations for those with Down syndrome," Costa said. "Right now there are drugs for the signs and symptoms of medical conditions more frequent in those with Down syndrome, but nothing to improve brain function. In fact, the prevailing wisdom has been that there is essentially nothing you can do to boost memory and learning in this group. Hopefully, we can prove them wrong."

But he and other Down researchers face an overall lack of federal funding, especially when compared to other diseases and disorders.

Costa has been supported by Forest Pharmaceuticals which is funding the clinical trial, the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome, the Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities and the National Institute of Child Health and Development, part of the National Institutes of Health.

"Clearly these funding sources are the unsung heroes," Costa said. "They may not get the attention or publicity but I can assure you that our efforts and the future of those with Down syndrome would be seriously compromised without their continued generosity."

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by University of Colorado Denver, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here sciencedaily.com

New research might help people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder

ScienceDaily (Aug. 2, 2011) — The discovery of a mechanism in the brain explains for the first time why people make particularly strong, long-lasting memories of stressful events in their lives and could help sufferers of post-traumatic stress disorder.

The study, carried out by researchers from the University of Bristol's Henry Wellcome Laboratories for Integrative Neuroscience & Endocrinology (HW-LINE) in the School of Clinical Sciences, and funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), is published online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

The research found that stress hormones directly stimulate biochemical processes in neurons that play a role in learning and memory. The way these hormones stimulate these signalling and epigenetic processes in neurons is completely new and has never been shown before.

In the healthy brain these processes operate smoothly and help people to cope with and learn from stressful events in their lives. In vulnerable people or in strongly traumatized people (victims of rape or war), these processes may be disturbed and stressful events may result in the formation of highly traumatic memories such as those seen in patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The discovery may lead to new ways to develop drugs to help these patients and to prevent PTSD in trauma victims.

Professor Johannes Reul, Professorial Research Fellow in Neuroscience at HW-LINE, said: "Making memories of events in our lives is of critical importance in order to cope properly with new situations and challenges in the future. This is of particular importance for emotional and traumatic life events. Our newly discovered mechanism should be regarded as an adaptive mechanism. We believe this mechanism could be disturbed in stress-related psychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety.

"The new findings may be of particular significance for patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as these patients are pained by pathological memories of an endured trauma (rape or war situations). We hope our discovery may help to generate a new class of drugs to help these patients."

The researchers found that stress-induced glucocorticoid hormones enhance memory formation through a direct, physical interaction of glucocorticoid-binding receptors ("glucocorticoid receptor") with a particular intracellular signalling pathway in a specific population of neurons of the hippocampus. This signalling pathway, the so-called ERK MAPK pathway, is known to be strongly involved in learning and memory processes but it was not known that it could interact with glucocorticoid receptors and that this would lead to an enhancement of memory formation.

This type of interaction has never been described before. The interaction has a major impact as the stimulated signalling cascade results in augmented epigenetic mechanisms in the nucleus of the affected neurons leading to enhanced expression of certain gene products. The induced gene products are known to evoke structural and functional changes in neurons allowing them to strengthen their role in the memory circuits of the brain.

It is well known that people make very strong memories of stressful, emotionally disturbing events in their lives. These so-called episodic memories are memories of the place (e.g. room, office) or surroundings where the event happened, how we felt at the time (mood), and the time of the day at which it happened. These kind of memories can last a lifetime.

The consolidation of such memories is taking place in a specific limbic brain region called the hippocampus -- part of the brain involved in memory and learning. Hormones secreted during stress like the glucocorticoid hormone cortisol (in rodents, corticosterone) act on the hippocampus to enhance the consolidation of these memories. However, until now it has been unknown how these hormones act on the hippocampus to enhance the formation of emotional event-related memories.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by University of Bristol.

Journal Reference:

María Gutièrrez-Mecinas, Alexandra F. Trollope, Andrew Collins, Hazel Morfett, Shirley A. Hesketh, Flavie Kersanté, and Johannes M. H. M. Reul. Long-lasting behavioral responses to stress involve a direct interaction of glucocorticoid receptors with ERK1/2–MSK1–Elk-1 signaling. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, August 1, 2011 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1104383108

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here sciencedaily.com

New research might help people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder

ScienceDaily (Aug. 2, 2011) — The discovery of a mechanism in the brain explains for the first time why people make particularly strong, long-lasting memories of stressful events in their lives and could help sufferers of post-traumatic stress disorder.

The study, carried out by researchers from the University of Bristol's Henry Wellcome Laboratories for Integrative Neuroscience & Endocrinology (HW-LINE) in the School of Clinical Sciences, and funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), is published online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

The research found that stress hormones directly stimulate biochemical processes in neurons that play a role in learning and memory. The way these hormones stimulate these signalling and epigenetic processes in neurons is completely new and has never been shown before.

In the healthy brain these processes operate smoothly and help people to cope with and learn from stressful events in their lives. In vulnerable people or in strongly traumatized people (victims of rape or war), these processes may be disturbed and stressful events may result in the formation of highly traumatic memories such as those seen in patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The discovery may lead to new ways to develop drugs to help these patients and to prevent PTSD in trauma victims.

Professor Johannes Reul, Professorial Research Fellow in Neuroscience at HW-LINE, said: "Making memories of events in our lives is of critical importance in order to cope properly with new situations and challenges in the future. This is of particular importance for emotional and traumatic life events. Our newly discovered mechanism should be regarded as an adaptive mechanism. We believe this mechanism could be disturbed in stress-related psychiatric disorders such as depression and anxiety.

"The new findings may be of particular significance for patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as these patients are pained by pathological memories of an endured trauma (rape or war situations). We hope our discovery may help to generate a new class of drugs to help these patients."

The researchers found that stress-induced glucocorticoid hormones enhance memory formation through a direct, physical interaction of glucocorticoid-binding receptors ("glucocorticoid receptor") with a particular intracellular signalling pathway in a specific population of neurons of the hippocampus. This signalling pathway, the so-called ERK MAPK pathway, is known to be strongly involved in learning and memory processes but it was not known that it could interact with glucocorticoid receptors and that this would lead to an enhancement of memory formation.

This type of interaction has never been described before. The interaction has a major impact as the stimulated signalling cascade results in augmented epigenetic mechanisms in the nucleus of the affected neurons leading to enhanced expression of certain gene products. The induced gene products are known to evoke structural and functional changes in neurons allowing them to strengthen their role in the memory circuits of the brain.

It is well known that people make very strong memories of stressful, emotionally disturbing events in their lives. These so-called episodic memories are memories of the place (e.g. room, office) or surroundings where the event happened, how we felt at the time (mood), and the time of the day at which it happened. These kind of memories can last a lifetime.

The consolidation of such memories is taking place in a specific limbic brain region called the hippocampus -- part of the brain involved in memory and learning. Hormones secreted during stress like the glucocorticoid hormone cortisol (in rodents, corticosterone) act on the hippocampus to enhance the consolidation of these memories. However, until now it has been unknown how these hormones act on the hippocampus to enhance the formation of emotional event-related memories.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by University of Bristol.

Journal Reference:

María Gutièrrez-Mecinas, Alexandra F. Trollope, Andrew Collins, Hazel Morfett, Shirley A. Hesketh, Flavie Kersanté, and Johannes M. H. M. Reul. Long-lasting behavioral responses to stress involve a direct interaction of glucocorticoid receptors with ERK1/2–MSK1–Elk-1 signaling. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, August 1, 2011 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1104383108

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here sciencedaily.com

People at risk for panic buffered from stressor by high levels of physical activity

ScienceDaily (July 14, 2011) — Regular exercise may be a useful strategy for helping prevent the development of panic and related disorders, a new study suggests.

People with an intense fear of the nausea, racing heart, dizziness, stomachaches and shortness of breath that accompany panic -- known as "high anxiety sensitivity" -- reacted with less anxiety to a panic-inducing stressor if they had been engaging in high levels of physical activity, said researchers at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and the University of Vermont in Burlington.

"Anxiety sensitivity is an established risk factor for the development of panic and related disorders," said SMU psychologist Jasper Smits, lead author on the research. "This study suggests that this risk factor may be less influential among persons who routinely engage in high levels of physical activity."

Regular exercise as an alternative or complementary strategy to drugs and psychotherapy

There is already good evidence that exercise can be of help to people who suffer from depression and anxiety problems, say the researchers.

"We're not suggesting, 'Exercise instead of pharmacotherapy or psychotherapy,'" Smits said. "Exercise is a useful alternative, particularly for those without access to traditional treatments. Primary care physicians already prescribe exercise for general health, so exercise may have the advantage of helping reach more people in need of treatment for depression and anxiety."

Smits reported the findings in "The Interplay Between Physical Activity and Anxiety Sensitivity in Fearful Responding to Carbon Dioxide Challenge," an article that has published online and is in press with the scientific journal Psychosomatic Medicine.

Co-authors include SMU psychology researchers Candyce Tart and David Rosenfield, and University of Vermont psychologist Michael Zvolensky.

New study adds to earlier research finding exercise reduces anxiety

The study builds on findings of earlier research, outlined in "Exercise for Mood and Anxiety: Proven strategies for overcoming depression and enhancing well-being" (Oxford University Press, 2011) by psychologists Michael Otto and Jasper Smits. That research indicates exercise improves mood and reduces anxiety, working like "an antidepressant drug."

Also, a 2008 study by Smits, director of the SMU Anxiety Research & Treatment Program and associate professor in the SMU Psychology Department, and Otto, a professor in Boston University's Psychology Department, indicated that exercise can also reduce anxiety sensitivity. That research, combined with the new findings, indicates that exercise may be an effective strategy for the prevention and treatment of anxiety disorders.

"Exercise can be a powerful addition to the range of treatments for depression, anxiety and general stress," said Otto. "And when people exercise to feel good, they are also taking the exact steps they need to benefit their general health."

Those with high anxiety sensitivity have greater risk of an attack

Anxiety sensitivity is the extent to which individuals fear they will be harmed by anxiety-related bodily sensations such as a racing heart, dizziness and shortness of breath, say the authors.

Research shows that the higher a person's anxiety sensitivity, the greater their risk for developing panic attacks and related psychological disorders.

"For people who have high anxiety sensitivity, the symptoms of anxiety tend to signal threat," said Smits. "They worry, 'I'll have a panic attack,' 'I'll die,' 'I'll go crazy,' 'I'll lose control' or 'I'll make a fool of myself.' That's been widely studied as one of the risk factors for development of anxiety disorders, mostly panic. And it's a robust risk factor in that it's been replicated in several studies."

Physical activity + fear of panic sensations = less reactivity to panic-relevant stressor

For the latest study, the researchers measured anxiety reactivity to a panic-related stressor, namely the inhalation of carbon dioxide-enriched air.

Study participants were 145 adult volunteers who had no history of panic attacks. After completing questionnaires measuring their physical activity and anxiety sensitivity, the participants inhaled a mixture of room air enriched with carbon dioxide, a benign procedure that typically induces a number of bodily sensations, including nausea, racing heart, dizziness, stomachaches and shortness of breath.

After inhalation, participants indicated their level of anxiety in reaction to the sensations.

The results showed that anxiety reactivity to the stressor was dampened among individuals who have been regularly engaging in high levels of physical activity.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by Southern Methodist University.

Journal Reference:

Jasper A.J. Smits, Candyce D. Tart, David Rosenfield and Michael J. Zvolensky. The Interplay Between Physical Activity and Anxiety Sensitivity in Fearful Responding to Carbon Dioxide Challenge. Psychosomatic Medicine, July 2011 vol. 73 no. 6 498-503 DOI: 10.1097/%u200BPSY.0b013e3182223b28

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

View the original article here