Increased cortical surface area but not altered cortical thickness or gyrification in bipolar disorder following stabilisation from a first episode of mania.

Background: Despite reports of altered brain morphology in established bipolar disorder (BD), there is limited understanding of when these morphological abnormalities emerge. Assessment of patients during the early course of illness can help to address this gap, but few studies have examined surface-based brain morphology in patients at this illness stage.

Methods: We completed a secondary analysis of baseline data from a randomised control trial of BD individuals stabilised after their first episode of mania (FEM).

Distinguishing schizophrenia spectrum from non-spectrum disorders among young patients with first episode psychosis and at high clinical risk: The role of basic self-disturbance and neurocognition.

Introduction: The distinction between the schizophrenia spectrum and other types of disorders may be clinically relevant in terms of its predictive validity as suggested by studies showing schizophrenia spectrum patients have more unfavourable outcomes compared to other psychotic disorders. The present study aimed to investigate whether basic self-disturbances and neurocognitive processes that have been linked to psychosis risk have discriminative power for schizophrenia spectrum disorders in patients presenting with first episode psychosis (FEP) and at ultra-high risk for psychosis (UHR).

Methods: 38 FEP patients, 48 UHR patients, and 33 healthy controls were assessed for basic self-disturbances (using the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience, EASE, interview), source monitoring and aberrant salience (behavioural tasks to measure neurocognitive constructs).

The neurophenomenology of early psychosis: An integrative empirical study.

Background: The integration of various domains or levels of analysis (clinical, neurobiological, genetic, etc.) has been a challenge in schizophrenia research. A promising approach is to use the core phenomenological features of the disorder as an organising principle for other levels of analysis.

Addressing mental health in elite athletes as a vehicle for early detection and intervention in the general community.

Recent scientific literature in addition to increased media attention has highlighted the important role of mental health in elite athletes. Often defined by terms such as "mental toughness", athletes are now becoming more open to discussing the role of anxiety, depression and other psychologically distressing processes that are intertwined with their time both during and after elite sport. In line with this, recent international position statements regarding the mental health of athletes have been released.

The construct validity of the Inventory of Psychotic-Like Anomalous Self-Experiences (IPASE) as a measure of minimal self-disturbance: Preliminary data.

Aim: The Inventory of Psychotic-Like Anomalous Self-Experiences (IPASE) is a self-report measure of minimal self-disturbance. The aim of the current report was to assess the construct validity of the scale by examining its convergent validity with the gold-standard measure of minimal self-disturbance, the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE), and its discriminant validity.

Method: The sample consisted of 46 participants (21 ultra-high risk for psychosis patients, 14 first episode psychosis patients, 11 healthy controls).

Differential effect of quetiapine and lithium on functional connectivity of the striatum in first episode mania.

Mood disturbances seen in first-episode mania (FEM) are linked to disturbed functional connectivity of the striatum. Lithium and quetiapine are effective treatments for mania but their neurobiological effects remain largely unknown. We conducted a single-blinded randomized controlled maintenance trial in 61 FEM patients and 30 healthy controls.

Cognitive functioning following stabilisation from first episode mania.

Background: The purpose of this study was to examine cognitive functioning in people following first-episode mania relative to a demographically similar healthy control group.

Methods: Forty-one patients, who had recently stabilised from a first manic episode, and twenty-one healthy controls, were compared in an extensive cognitive assessment.

Results: First-episode mania participants had significantly lower Full-Scale IQ (FSIQ) relative to healthy controls; however, this finding could be driven by premorbid differences in intellectual functioning.

Social and academic premorbid adjustment domains predict different functional outcomes among youth with first episode mania.

Background: Premorbid characteristics may help predict the highly variable functional and illness outcomes of young people with early stage Bipolar Disorder (BD). We sought to examine the relationships between premorbid adjustment and short to medium-term outcomes after a first treated episode of mania.

Methods: We examined the baseline and 18-month follow-up characteristics of 117 participants with first episode of mania, treated at two tertiary early intervention services in Melbourne, Australia.

Neuroprotection after a first episode of mania: a randomized controlled maintenance trial comparing the effects of lithium and quetiapine on grey and white matter volume.

Lithium and quetiapine are effective treatments for bipolar disorder, but their potential neuroprotective effects in humans remain unclear. A single blinded equivalence randomized controlled maintenance trial was conducted in a prospective cohort of first-episode mania (FEM) patients (n=26) to longitudinally compare the putative protective effects of lithium and quetapine on grey and white matter volume. A healthy control sample was also collected (n=20).

Evaluation of changes in prescription medication use after a residential treatment programme for borderline personality disorder.

Objective: Residential patients diagnosed with borderline personality disorder were evaluated to determine whether borderline personality disorder-focused psychotherapy reduced prescribing, personality disorder and co-morbid symptom severity.

Method: Psychotropic prescriptions were measured at admission, discharge and 1 year later in 74 female participants with one or more personality disorder diagnosis and co-morbid mood disorders. Changes in pharmacotherapy were examined in the context of improvements in borderline personality disorder and/or co-morbid disorder symptom severity.

Individual placement and support, supported education in young people with mental illness: an exploratory feasibility study.

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of adapting individual placement and support (IPS) to education for young people presenting to a tertiary mental health service who wished to re-engage with or be supported in their education.

Methods: The study was an uncontrolled trial. Twenty young people with severe mental illness were recruited and worked with an educational specialist providing adapted IPS for education (IPSed).

Duration of untreated psychosis: Impact of the definition of treatment onset on its predictive value over three years of treatment.

Background: While reduction of DUP (Duration of Untreated Psychosis) is a key goal in early intervention strategies, the predictive value of DUP on outcome has been questioned. We planned this study in order to explore the impact of three different definition of "treatment initiation" on the predictive value of DUP on outcome in an early psychosis sample.

Methods: 221 early psychosis patients aged 18-35 were followed-up prospectively over 36 months.

The effectiveness of simple psychological and physical activity interventions for high prevalence mental health problems in young people: A factorial randomised controlled trial.

Background: The prevalence and burden of disease of depression and anxiety disorders in young people necessitates effective early intervention strategies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of low-intensity interventions (problem solving therapy (PST) and physical activity promotion) in young people (15-25 years) with mild-moderate depression and/or anxiety.

Method: A 2×2 factorial randomised controlled trial (RCT) with factors of PST versus supportive counselling (control) and behavioural activation physical activity versus lifestyle psychoeducation (control).

The Mental Health of Elite Athletes: A Narrative Systematic Review.

Background: The physical impacts of elite sport participation have been well documented; however, there is comparatively less research on the mental health and psychological wellbeing of elite athletes.

Objective: This review appraises the evidence base regarding the mental health and wellbeing of elite-level athletes, including the incidence and/or nature of mental ill-health and substance use.

Methods: A systematic search of the PubMed, EMBASE, SPORTDiscus, PsycINFO, Cochrane and Google Scholar databases, up to and including May 2015, was conducted.

Trajectory and predictors of quality of life in first episode psychotic mania.

Background: Little is known about the trajectory of quality of life (QoL) following a first episode of psychotic mania in bipolar disorder (BD). This 18-month longitudinal study investigated the trajectory of QoL, and the influence of premorbid adjustment and symptoms on 18-month QoL in a cohort of young people experiencing a first episode of psychotic mania.

Methods: As part of an overarching clinical trial, at baseline, sixty participants presenting with a first episode of psychotic mania (BD Type 1 - DSM-IV) completed symptomatic and functional assessments in addition to the Premorbid Adjustment Scale - General Subscale.

Rate of community treatment orders and readmission orders following reconfiguration of community mental health services.

Objectives: Community treatment orders (CTOs) are a controversial practice as they extend the practice of involuntary treatment into the community. This study aimed to determine whether there was a difference in the rate of CTOs and revocation (readmission) orders following the implementation of a recovery-orientated model across four adult mental health services.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted prior to and after the reconfiguration of services.

A single-blind, randomised controlled trial on the effects of lithium and quetiapine monotherapy on the trajectory of cognitive functioning in first episode mania: A 12-month follow-up study.

Background: Cognitive deficits have been reported during the early stages of bipolar disorder; however, the role of medication on such deficits remains unclear. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of lithium and quetiapine monotherapy on cognitive performance in people following first episode mania.

Methods: The design was a single-blind, randomised controlled trial on a cohort of 61 participants following first episode mania.

The impact of past direct-personal traumatic events on 12-month outcome in first episode psychotic mania: trauma and early psychotic mania.

Objective: Past traumatic events have been associated with poorer clinical outcomes in people with bipolar disorder. However, the impact of these events in the early stages of the illness remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate whether prior traumatic events were related to poorer outcomes 12 months following a first episode of psychotic mania.

The impact of insight in a first-episode mania with psychosis population on outcome at 18 months.

Background: To explore whether poor initial insight during a first episode of mania with psychotic features was predictive of poor psychosocial and clinical outcomes at 18 months.

Methods: Secondary analysis was performed on data collected during an 8-week RCT comparing the efficacy of olanzapine versus chlorpromazine as an adjunct to lithium, and at 18-month follow-up. 74 participants were divided into three groups (no insight, partial insight, and full insight) according to the insight item from the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS).

Temperament and Maltreatment in the Emergence of Borderline and Antisocial Personality Pathology during Early Adolescence.

Objective: The present study utilized a prospective, longitudinal design to examine the role of temperament and maltreatment in predicting the emergence of borderline (BPD) and antisocial (ASPD) personality disorder symptoms during adolescence.

Method: Two hundred and forty-five children aged between 11 and 13 years were recruited from primary schools in Melbourne, Australia. Participants completed temperament, maltreatment, BPD and ASPD symptom measures, and approximately two years later, 206 participants were again assessed for BPD and ASPD symptoms.

Sex-specific prediction of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity by pituitary volume during adolescence: a longitudinal study from 12 to 17 years of age.

Objective: To investigate the longitudinal relationship between pituitary gland volume (PGV) and parameters of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPAA) functioning during adolescence.

Methods: Participants were 49 adolescents (19 girls and 30 boys) selected from a larger longitudinal, population-based study of adolescent development. Assessments were conducted at three time points (S1, S2 and S3).

Outdoor adventure for young people with a mental illness.

Aim: The study aims to evaluate the efficacy of an Outdoor Adventure Group (OAG) for young people with a mental illness. It was hypothesized that participating in OAG would result in an increase in self-esteem, sense of mastery and social connectedness, compared with those who attended other Psychosocial Recovery Group Program groups based at Orygen Youth Health. In addition, those in the OAG would show an improved performance of personal goals.