n A patient’s mental health status
before bladder cancer surgery
may indicate his or her risk for
complications, finds research conducted
at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center in
Tampa. Scientists asked 274 patients who
were undergoing bladder removal as a
treatment for advanced bladder cancer
to complete a quality-of-life survey.
Patients who scored low on a mental
health self-assessment suffered more
serious complications in the month
following surgery than patients with
higher self-assessments, the researchers
found (Journal of Urology, January).
n Psychotherapy is an effective
treatment for gastrointestinal symptoms
among those suffering from irritable
bowel syndrome (IBS), according to a
meta-analysis by researchers at Vanderbilt
University. The study examined 41
clinical trials with more than 2,200 IBS
patients. Results showed no significant
difference in the effectiveness of different
that, compared with women who did
not use the antidepressant, first trimester
use of the drug was associated with a
23 percent increased risk of any major
congenital malformations and a 28
percent increased risk of major cardiac
malformations in newborns (British
Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, online
Nov. 27).
n Post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD) resources are lacking for
nonveterans, according to a study led
by Brown University researchers. After
reviewing the research literature on
civilian PTSD treatment as well as
consumer-oriented websites, the
researchers found that compared
with resources from the
departments of Veterans Affairs
and Defense, treatment
resources for nonveterans
experiencing PTSD,
including victims of
sexual assault, child
abuse and natural
disasters, are much less
cohesive and helpful.
The researchers
recommended further
study on treatment
outcomes, access and
costs for these victims,
uniform measures
across such studies to
ensure comparability,
and the establishment of
a patient-centered institute
to marshal and maintain
resources and best practices
for treatment (Harvard Review
of Psychiatry, November/
December).
For direct links to these
journal articles, click on the
journal names.
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Children conceived via infertility
treatments are no more likely to
have a developmental delay than
those conceived without such
treatments, according to a study
by researchers at the National
Institutes of Health, the New York
State Department of Health and
other institutions. The mothers of
more than 5,800 children — 1,800
conceived via infertility treatments
— completed questionnaires on
their children’s fine motor, gross
motor, communication, personal
and social functioning, and
problem-solving skills at numerous
intervals during the children’s first
three years of life. Findings showed
that children conceived via fertility
treatments scored similarly to other
children on the developmental
assessments (JAMA Pediatrics,
online Jan. 4).
