Focus on Neurology and Psychiatry

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How Autism Manifests Differently in Girls vs Boys Apr 20, 2016

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Host: Paul Rokuskie

Recent studies have uncovered sex differences in both the neurobiology and phenotypical presentations of autism. These emerging understandings for how autism manifests uniquely in girls vs boys may radically change the way autism spectrum disorder is clinically perceived, improving diagnostic sensitivity and personalizing therapies.

Joining host Paul Rokuskie to discuss this line of research developments in autism spectrum disorder is Dr. Kaustubh Supekar, research scientist in the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine.

Identifying Children at Risk for Persistent Symptoms after Concussion Mar 09, 2016

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Approximately one-third of children who experience a concussion will experience persistent post-concussion symptoms. Researchers have developed a new clinical scoring system that may help predict which patients are at a higher risk for prolonged symptoms.
Canadian researchers evaluated more than 3,000 patients, ages 5 to 18, who presented within 48 hours of an acute head injury. About thirty percent ended up with persistent post-concussion symptoms at 28 days. Researchers identified nine clinical factors that were predictive of post-concussive symptoms. These factors were then used in a twelve point risk score that included items like age, sex, history of migraines or depression, prior history of concussion, and problems with balance.
Although the clinical score was better than a physician's judgement alone, further research is needed before it is fully adopted into clinical practice.

[Watch more videos of The JAMA Report]

Protect the Head: A Former Pro Football Player's Mission to Prevent Concussions Mar 07, 2016

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Host: Brian P. McDonough, MD, FAAFP

Dr. Brian McDonough welcomes John Roman, CEO of Defend Your Head, a sports safety company based in Chester County, PA. Mr. Roman is a former offensive lineman in the NFL with the New York Jets (1976-1983) before launching a 30-year successful career on Wall Street. He joins Primary Care Today to discuss technological advances in helmet design and construction for football players of all ages. His company has recently developed ProTech, a football helmet product using a soft outer-shell technology designed to improve energy and force dissipation and reduction.

Eating Seafood May Help Lower the Risk of Dementia Feb 04, 2016

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A new study examined the brains of deceased individuals and found that moderate seafood consumption correlated with lesser Alzheimer disease.
Researchers from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago enrolled older people living in public housing and retirement communities in an ongoing study of memory and aging. Participants had normal memory function when they entered the study and were asked to keep track of their diet using a detailed questionnaire. The participants also agreed to brain donation after they died, providing researchers a total of 286 brains to examine.
They found that participants who reported consuming seafood at least once a week had decreased occurrence of the plaques and tangles associated with Alzheimer disease. Increased seafood consumption was associated with increased brain mercury levels, but the mercury did not appear to have an impact on brain health.

[Watch more videos of The JAMA Report]

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Updates Recommendations for Depression Screening in Adults Jan 27, 2016

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Depression is a common clinical problem, and is a leading cause of disability in adults. This condition is often under recognized and under treated, affecting individuals, families, businesses and society. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force is an independent group of medical professionals that makes evidence-based recommendations about clinical preventive services in the primary care setting. The Task Force is recommending screening for depression in adults, including pregnant and postpartum women.

[Watch more videos of The JAMA Report]

Electromagnetic Therapy Improves Survival in Patients with Aggressive Type of Brain Cancer Jan 05, 2016

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Glioblastoma is the most devastating form of brain cancer in adults; most patients die within one to two years of diagnosis. A new study examined whether using tumor-treating fields, a type of electromagnetic therapy, combined with maintenance chemotherapy in patients with glioblastoma who had already completed standard chemotherapy and radiation, could increase survival.
Researchers from University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland are conducting a worldwide trial with 695 glioblastoma patients. One out of three received a standard maintenance course of chemotherapy, while the other two received maintenance therapy plus the tumor treating fields for up to two years.
The current results are for the first 315 patients. Researchers found that use of the tumor-treating fields increased both progression-free survival and overall survival. Overall survival is prolonged by an average of three months in patients getting the tumor-treating fields therapy.

[Watch more videos of The JAMA Report]

Depression Among Resident Physicians Jan 05, 2016

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Even in the general population, people often don't want to talk about depression, which is one of the major reasons it isn't always treated properly. Depression is also a concern in the medical community, particularly affecting physicians in training known as medical residents. A considerable number of medical residents suffer significant depressive symptoms at various times during their training. What should be done to address the problem?

[Watch more videos of The JAMA Report]

Delaying or Deferring the Onset of Alzheimer’s Disease: Can a New Blood Test Help? Dec 28, 2015

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Host: Jennifer Caudle, DO

Host Jennifer Caudle, DO welcomes Robert Nagele, PhD, a Rowan University researcher and Professor at the Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Nagele and his team are closing in on a new blood test to detect Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, MS, cancers and other diseases by searching for the autoantibodies created by the disease processes. The test has initially shown to be remarkably accurate in research trials with a capability to accurately assess the stage of disease. More important, it appears to detect pre-clinical disease, giving physicians an opportunity to intervene with lifestyle changes that delay or defer the onset of symptoms.

This program was recorded live at the American Osteopathic Association's annual medical education conference, OMED2015 in Orlando, FL,

Helping Patients Overcome Travel Anxieties in Uncertain Times Dec 21, 2015

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Host: Brian P. McDonough, MD, FAAFP

Dr. Brian McDonough welcomes Dr Ken Yeager, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Ohio State University School of Medicine. Dr. Yeager examines how physicians can help their patients handle the stress of a "24-hour news world" with depictions and images of disasters coming into their homes every day.

The Traumatized Brain: A Family Guide to Understanding Mood, Memory, and Behavior after Brain Injury Dec 14, 2015

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Host: Maurice Pickard, MD

A traumatic brain injury is a life-changing event, affecting an individual’s lifestyle, ability to work, relationships―even personality. In The Traumatized Brain: a Family Guide to Understanding Mood, Memory, and Behavior after Brain Injury, co-author and neuropsychiatrist Dr. Sandeep Vaishnavi explains how traumatic brain injury, whether mild, moderate, or severe, affects the brain. He describes how emotional symptoms such as depression, anxiety, mania, and apathy can be treated; how behavioral symptoms such as psychosis, aggression, impulsivity, and sleep disturbances can be addressed; and how cognitive functions like attention, memory, executive functioning, and language can be improved.

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