Caregiver skills training for caregivers of individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Aim: To systematically review the effectiveness of caregiver and parent skills training programs, including caregiver-mediated interventions, for caregivers of individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders.

Method: We conducted a systematic review with a random-effects meta-analysis. We searched 11 electronic databases through July 2021 and used a snowball methodology to locate relevant articles of randomized controlled trials.

Major Depressive Disorder in Iran: Epidemiology, Health Care Provision, Utilization, and Challenges.

One in eight adults in Iran is estimated to have major depressive disorder (MDD) - a leading cause of disability in the country. Many remain undiagnosed, and some receive only partial treatment. An estimated 60% of those with MDD were reported to have received no treatment during the past year.

Effect of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) on cognitive impairment among patients with chronic schizophrenia: a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) is a noninvasive technique used in different medical fields. It has been applied in different medical areas such as wound healing, traumatic brain injuries, neurological disorders, cognitive disorders, Alzheimer's disease, pain, and arthritis, with different results. We studied the effectiveness of LLLT on cognitive impairment in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

Job Burnout and Related Factors among Health Sector Employees.

Job burnout can cause physical and psychological damage and reduce job efficiency, especially in difficult jobs such as health care fields. This study aimed to assess the association between the level of job burnout and some contributing factors among health care providers in Iran. This study was performed on the data derived from 1807 participants from the first phase of the employees' health cohort in 2017-2018.

Integrating mental health into primary care in Nigeria: report of a demonstration project using the mental health gap action programme intervention guide.

Background: The World Mental Health Surveys conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) have shown that huge treatment gaps for severe mental disorders exist in both developed and developing countries. This gap is greatest in low and middle income countries (LMICs). Efforts to scale up mental health services in LMICs have to contend with the paucity of mental health professionals and health facilities providing specialist services for mental, neurological and substance use (MNS) disorders.

Parent skills training for parents of children or adults with developmental disorders: systematic review and meta-analysis protocol.

Introduction: Developmental disorders, including intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorders, may limit an individual's capacity to conduct daily activities. The emotional and economic burden on families caring for an individual with a developmental disorder is substantial, and quality of life may be limited by a lack of services. Therefore, finding effective treatments to help this population should be a priority.

Setting global research priorities for developmental disabilities, including intellectual disabilities and autism.

Objectives: The prevalence of intellectual disabilities (ID) has been estimated at 10.4/1000 worldwide with higher rates among children and adolescents in lower income countries. The objective of this paper is to address research priorities for development disabilities, notably ID and autism, at the global level and to propose the more rational use of scarce funds in addressing this under-investigated area.

Non-specialist psychosocial interventions for children and adolescents with intellectual disability or lower-functioning autism spectrum disorders: a systematic review.

Background: The development of effective treatments for use by non-specialists is listed among the top research priorities for improving the lives of people with mental illness worldwide. The purpose of this review is to appraise which interventions for children with intellectual disabilities or lower-functioning autism spectrum disorders delivered by non-specialist care providers in community settings produce benefits when compared to either a no-treatment control group or treatment-as-usual comparator.

Methods And Findings: We systematically searched electronic databases through 24 June 2013 to locate prospective controlled studies of psychosocial interventions delivered by non-specialist providers to children with intellectual disabilities or lower-functioning autism spectrum disorders.

Country contextualization of the mental health gap action programme intervention guide: a case study from Nigeria.

As one article in an ongoing series on Global Mental Health Practice, Jibril Abdulmalik and colleagues describe the implementation of the mhGAP-Intervention Guide in Nigeria, which has resulted in a country-specific version.

Interventions for common perinatal mental disorders in women in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of interventions to improve the mental health of women in the perinatal period and to evaluate any effect on the health, growth and development of their offspring, in low- and middle-income (LAMI) countries.

Methods: Seven electronic bibliographic databases were systematically searched for papers published up to May 2012 describing controlled trials of interventions designed to improve mental health outcomes in women who were pregnant or had recently given birth. The main outcomes of interest were rates of common perinatal mental disorders (CPMDs), primarily postpartum depression or anxiety; measures of the quality of the mother-infant relationship; and measures of infant or child health, growth and cognitive development.

Global prevalence of autism and other pervasive developmental disorders.

We provide a systematic review of epidemiological surveys of autistic disorder and pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) worldwide. A secondary aim was to consider the possible impact of geographic, cultural/ethnic, and socioeconomic factors on prevalence estimates and on clinical presentation of PDD. Based on the evidence reviewed, the median of prevalence estimates of autism spectrum disorders was 62/10 000.

Efficacy of community-based rehabilitation for children with or at significant risk of intellectual disabilities in low- and middle-income countries: a review.

Background: Community-based rehabilitation (CBR) is being implemented in more than 90 countries. Concerns have been voiced about the adequacy of the evidence base regarding the efficacy, effectiveness and efficiency of CBR. This review summarizes evidence on the efficacy of CBR for children with intellectual disabilities.

Interventions provided by parents for children with intellectual disabilities in low and middle income countries.

Background: In low- and middle-income (LAMI) countries, there is a lack of well-trained therapists to provide specialist interventions for children with intellectual disabilities and their families. We sought to identify strategies deliverable by families or non-specialist workers.

Materials And Methods: After searches of appropriate scientific databases, we applied GRADE methodology to rate the quality of evidence for these interventions.

Interventions for children with pervasive developmental disorders in low and middle income countries.

Background: Although interventions for children with pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) have been the focus of research effort and evidence reviews in many Western countries, this evidence has not been assessed in the context of low- and middle-income (LAMI) countries especially in terms of the fit with different cultures and resources.

Method: As a part of the WHO MH-GAP project, we carried out a systematic review of published literature relating to interventions for PDD in LAMI countries. Given the small amount of direct evidence found, we supplemented the review with findings from existing relevant evidence reviews to draw practical recommendations.

The identification of children with, or at significant risk of, intellectual disabilities in low- and middle-income countries: a review.

Background: Developmental monitoring of children is an important strategy for the early detection and management of intellectual disabilities (ID) in high-income countries. This review summarizes the literature on identifying children with ID in low- and middle-income (LAMI) countries.

Materials And Methods: Electronic literature database searches were conducted to identify articles in the English language published since 1990 relating to the identification of children with, or at risk of, ID in LAMI countries.

The role of health systems factors in facilitating access to psychotropic medicines: a cross-sectional analysis of the WHO-AIMS in 63 low- and middle-income countries.

Background: Neuropsychiatric conditions comprise 14% of the global burden of disease and 30% of all noncommunicable disease. Despite the existence of cost-effective interventions, including administration of psychotropic medicines, the number of persons who remain untreated is as high as 85% in low- and middle-income countries (LAMICs). While access to psychotropic medicines varies substantially across countries, no studies to date have empirically investigated potential health systems factors underlying this issue.

Responsible governance for mental health research in low resource countries.

Blurb: Taghi Yasamy and colleagues identify challenges facing good research governance in low- and middle-income countries and provide suggestions for a way forward.

Evidence-based guidelines for mental, neurological, and substance use disorders in low- and middle-income countries: summary of WHO recommendations.

Shekhar Saxena and colleagues summarize the recent WHO Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) intervention guide that provides evidence-based management recommendations for mental, neurological, and substance use (MNS) disorders.

If you could only choose five psychotropic medicines: updating the interagency emergency health kit.

Mark van Ommeren and colleagues describe how they chose five psychotropic medicines to add to the Interagency Emergency Health Kit, which is a box with medicines and medical supplies designed to help people in major humanitarian emergencies.

Challenges in developing evidence-based recommendations using the GRADE approach: the case of mental, neurological, and substance use disorders.

Corrado Barbui and colleagues describe their use and adaptation of the GRADE approach in developing the guidelines for the WHO mental health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP).

Cyproheptadine in the treatment of autistic disorder: a double-blind placebo-controlled trial.

Objective: Autism is a childhood-onset disorder of unknown, possibly of multiple aetiologies. The core symptoms of autism are abnormalities in social interaction, communication and behaviour. The involvement of neurotransmitters such as 5-HT has been suggested in neuropsychiatric disorders and particularly in autistic disorder.

Wagon-wheel illusion under steady illumination: real or illusory?

Wheels turning in the movies sometimes appear to rotate backwards. This is called the wagon-wheel illusion (WWI). The mechanism of this illusion is based on the intermittent nature of light in films and other stroboscopic presentations, which renders them as a series of snapshots rather than a continuous visual data stream.

Mental health survey of the adult population in Iran.

Background: No national data on the prevalence of mental disorders are available in Iran. Such information may be a prerequisite for efficient national mental health intervention.

Aims: To determine the mental health status of a population sample aged 15 years and over.