Blood pressure safety of subanesthetic ketamine for depression: A report on 684 infusions.

Background: The dissociative anesthetic agent ketamine is increasingly being utilized to treat depression, despite not having FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval for this indication. There are many questions about the potential risks of this treatment and hence the proper setting and degree of monitoring required to ensure patient safety. There is limited data about the cardiovascular safety of ketamine when administered at subanesthetic doses to treat depression.

Randomized controlled equivalence trial comparing videoconference and in person delivery of cognitive processing therapy for PTSD.

Introduction: In an effort to improve access to and utilization of health care, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) continues to investigate the effectiveness of video-teleconferencing (VTC) technologies for service delivery. While previous research focused on the efficacy of VTC treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in Vietnam era veterans, few studies have evaluated the efficacy of this modality and treatment for the Iraq/Afghanistan era veterans. The aim of this randomized clinical trial was to evaluate equivalence between in person and VTC psychotherapy for PTSD in this newer cohort.

Pathological dieting and alcohol use in college women--a continuum of behaviors.

The relationship between dieting and bingeing severity and alcohol use was studied in a sample of women in their first year of college (n = 1384). The study was designed to replicate and extend earlier findings of a graded positive relationship between the dieting and bingeing severity and the frequency, intensity, and negative consequences of alcohol use in young women, while adjusting for known predictors of alcohol use. Prevalence of past month alcohol use, drinking enough to get high on half or more drinking occasions, and heavy drinking (>or= five drinks in a row) in these women were positively associated with dieting and bingeing severity in a graded manner across the entire range of these behaviors.

Teaching psychiatric residents to teach.

Teaching other residents and medical students is one of the primary activities of psychiatric residents, yet most receive minimal or no formal training or supervision on how to teach. This report describes a Teaching Day Workshop, designed and implemented by residents at the Massachusetts General Hospital with the support of their faculty and an educational consultant, as one model to introduce the concepts and techniques of teaching to psychiatric residents. The participating residents were unanimous in their positive appraisal of the workshop, and they recommended that additional seminars on teaching be integrated into the residency's core curriculum.