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Two innovative new app based questionnaires could help identify the suicide risk for females when these tools are used along with a blood test designed to detect certain biomarkers. When the app based questionnaires were used along with the blood test the researchers were able to predict any future suicidal thoughts with an accuracy of 82%. In addition the researchers could accurately predict future hospitalizations associated with suicidal thoughts or actions at around 78%. In 2015 research was published that showed the suicide risk for males could be predicted with certain questionnaires and biomarker blood tests, and the latest research shows that these study findings could also be used for women as well. The Indiana University School of Medicine researchers determined that while women tend to successfully commit suicide less often than men women generally make more attempts to do so but they typically use means which are less violent and which may not be as lethal.
IU School of Medicine professor of psychiatry and medical neuroscience, Richard L. Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center attending psychiatrist, and principal investigator for the latest study on suicide risk and app based questionnaires Alexander B. Niculescu III, M.D., Ph.D. Explained the findings. “Women have not been adequately studied in research about suicide, and we did not know how well we would be able to define objective predictors of suicide in women. It was important to determine whether biomarkers and app-based questionnaires could be used to make predictions among women, and whether such tests can be adjusted for gender to be more accurate. These results suggest that the best way to proceed would be to use gender-tailored approaches.”
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According to recent research and the latest medical study certain violence risk factors associated with mental illness can be predicted. The researchers identified 3 specific factors that could up the odds of violent behavior by an individual who has been diagnosed with mental illness. These risk factors are the use of alcohol, being the victim of violence and behavior that is violent, and engaging in violent behavior. Mental health professionals should pay close attention to these three risk factors in order to predict which mentally ill patients may become violent in the future. Early intervention by mental health professionals could minimize or even eliminate the risk of violence in this class of patients. The recent study utilized a database with information on more than 4,400 cases and patients who were diagnosed with some form of mental illness, and these mental disorders included bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and depression.
North Carolina State University associate professor of psychology Dr. Sarah Desmarais was one of the co-authors on the research study paper concerning the link between violence risk factors and mental illness. According to Desmarais “Our earlier work found that adults with mental illness are more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrators —and that is especially relevant to this new study. One of the new findings is that people with mental illness who have been victims of violence in the past six months are more likely to engage in future violent behavior themselves. We found that these risk factors were predictive even when we accounted for age, sex, race, mental illness diagnosis and other clinical characteristics. This is useful information for anyone working in a clinical setting. But it also highlights the importance of creating policies that can help protect people with mental illness from being victimized. It’s not only the right thing to do, but it makes for safer communities.”
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DNA addiction testing sounds like science fiction but there is already an opioid risk genetic profile test called the Proove Opioid Risk genetic profile test that can be used by physicians and patients. Some medical and addiction experts have questioned whether the testing is legitimate or how accurate the test results truly are though. Roswell Pain Specialists physician and addiction treatment specialist Dr. Damon Christian Kimes believes in this genetic testing, so much so that he provides it to all of his new patients. Others point out that the research and data from this testing has been supplied by the company’s own scientists and this data has not been independently confirmed.
When discussing the opioid risk genetic profile testing and DNA addiction testing with Atlanta news media Fox 5 Dr. Kimes explained “People often do not know what their genetics hold. What we will be able to do is look at the opioid risk index, we are going to be able to look at specific medications and how your body metabolizes or breaks down those medications. When you have that genetic DNA test right there … you can say this is in your genetic makeup, [and] we can act on it or avoid certain things because we know that this is something that we may have a problem with later on.” According to Proove, the company that provides the genetic testing, the opioid risk genetic profile has an accuracy rate of 92%, and the test determines whether the opioid dependency risk for the individual is low, moderate, or high.
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Sober living facilities are residential centers designed for individuals who are in substance abuse recovery and who are ready to leave intensive inpatient rehab but who may not be ready or strong enough in their recovery to go back home yet. These facilities are typically group homes where all of the residents are expected to follow the same rules, undergo drug and alcohol testing, perform certain household chores, and stay clean and sober while they live at the facility. This environment promotes the recovery process and lowers the risk of relapse after the individual has left rehab. Adjusting to life without addictions can be a challenge and these facilities can help recovering addicts meet these challenges in a way that is less stressful. These facilities may be owned by private individuals, charitable organizations, and even businesses.
One of the biggest rules in sober living facilities is that every resident must stay clean and sober while they reside in the residence. Residents have greater freedom than they did while they were in rehab, and most facilities offer resources for substance abuse recovery such as group therapy sessions which may be mandatory. The goal is to transition from rehab to home without a big risk of relapsing, and to give the individual in recovery some space so that they can adjust to life without drugs or alcohol before they head home to the same environment that they used in. People who have substance abuse issues are typically irresponsible and make poor choices. Sober living facilities can help the individual make better choices, and the threat of being made to leave the facility if testing positive for drugs or alcohol may keep the individual from using while they are still trying to recover.
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A new study performed by researchers at the National institutes of Health has determined that children who suffer from Cushing Syndrome may be at a higher risk for suicide and depression than children who do not have this syndrome. The condition is a disorder of the endocrine system which is rare, and it results in the production of abnormally high levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Often the excess hormone is caused when a tumor forms on the pituitary or adrenal glands, but it can also be the result of taking excessive steroid medications as well. There is a marked difference in the development of depression between adults and children who suffer from Cushing Syndrome. Adults typically experience anxiety and depression before receiving treatment while children generally develop these same symptoms after treatment is received.
NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Division of Intramural Research director Constantine Stratakis, a senior author of the study on Cushing Syndrome, depression, and suicide, explained the study results. Stratakis stated “Our results indicate that physicians who care for young people with Cushing syndrome should screen their patients for depression-related mental illness after the underlying disease has been successfully treated. Patients may not tell their doctors that they’re feeling depressed, so it’s a good idea for physicians to screen their patients proactively for depression and related conditions.” The findings for the study have been published in Pediatrics. Researchers have suggested that children who have Cushing Syndrome should be informed that they could experience changes after treatment so these patients know what to expect and they can report any changes to their physician.
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Co-dependency is a behavior that is learned, often starting in early childhood, and it usually leads to unhealthy relationships and dysfunctional family dynamics. This learned behavior can be passed down through generations, and it is often called relationship addiction. The relationships that people who are co-dependent have are usually emotionally destructive, abusive in some way, and completely one sided. This condition was first noticed when researchers studied the families of alcoholics, and co-dependency is learned by watching members of the family unit display these traits. People in a co-dependent relationship are usually suffering from some type of substance abuse or they are a relative or friend of someone who has an addiction or substance abuse issue. Co-dependency can also be found in cases of compulsive gambling, compulsive shopping, sex addiction, and other addictions as well.
Co-dependency results in unhealthy relationships for many reasons. The person who cares about the individual with a substance abuse disorder or other problem may unconsciously enable the destructive behavioral pattern. The co-dependent individual may feel a need to be needed, or they may have learned in childhood that their needs are less important than the needs of the alcoholic or addict. Before co-dependency can be addressed and resolved the person must evaluate why they enable certain behaviors and what they need to work on to be emotionally healthy themselves. Co-dependency can be eliminated but this requires the right treatment and a healthy state of mind. Co-dependency can not help build a healthy relationship and the destructive patterns that this condition causes can ruin your life.
