Developmental vitamin D deficiency increases foetal exposure to testosterone.

Background: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders which are more common in males. The 'prenatal sex steroid' hypothesis links excessive sex-steroid exposure during foetal life with the behavioural differences observed in ASD. However, the reason why sex steroid exposure may be excessive remains unclear.

High-Dose Vitamin D Supplementation in Pregnancy and Neurodevelopment in Childhood: A Prespecified Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Observational studies have reported an association between high maternal vitamin D levels and improved neurodevelopment in offspring, but no randomized clinical trial (RCT) has investigated these observations.

Objective: To determine whether high-dose vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy improves offspring neurodevelopment from birth to age 6 years.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This prespecified secondary analysis of a double-blinded, placebo-controlled RCT of high-dose vitamin D3 supplementation vs standard dose during the third trimester of pregnancy was conducted in the unselected prospective mother-child birth cohort at a single-center research unit in Denmark as part of the Copenhagen Prospective Studies on Asthma in Childhood 2010 (COPSAC-2010).

Supporting mental health staff following exposure to occupational violence - staff perceptions of 'peer' support.

Mental health professionals frequently work in environments where stressful, unpredictable, and potentially volatile situations can arise. Staff responses to these, often violent events, can be severe and enduring. Psychological first aid provided by a colleague following exposure to such violence is gaining increasing acceptance as a means of assisting affected individuals.

Co-morbidity between mood and anxiety disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

There is consistent evidence that mood disorders often co-occur with anxiety disorders, however, the strength of the association of these two broad groups of disorders has been challenging to summarize across different studies. The aim was to conduct a meta-analysis of publications reporting on the pairwise comorbidity between mood and anxiety disorders after sorting into comparable study types. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science, and the grey literature for publications between 1980 and 2017 regardless of geographical locations and languages.

'True crime' stories and psychiatrists' ethical responsibilities.

Objective: In May 2018, a small paperback book was published, which briefly described 10 cases of persons charged with murder whom an Australian psychiatrist had assessed for the court. This article considers the ethical issues raised by identifying both the persons charged with murder and their victims in newspaper articles and interviews to promote a book.

Conclusions: When persons who have committed homicide are named in a 'true crime' book, their recovery trajectory may be prejudiced and the families of their victims may be re-traumatised.

Alcohol-attributed disease burden in four Nordic countries between 2000 and 2017: Are the gender gaps narrowing? A comparison using the Global Burden of Disease, Injury and Risk Factor 2017 study.

Introduction And Aims: The gender difference in alcohol use seems to have narrowed in the Nordic countries, but it is not clear to what extent this may have affected differences in levels of harm. We compared gender differences in all-cause and cause-specific alcohol-attributed disease burden, as measured by disability-adjusted life-years (DALY), in four Nordic countries in 2000-2017, to find out if gender gaps in DALYs had narrowed.

Design And Methods: Alcohol-attributed disease burden by DALYs per 100 000 population with 95% uncertainty intervals were extracted from the Global Burden of Disease database.

Abnormal Behavior and Cortical Connectivity Deficits in Mice Lacking Usp9x.

Genetic association studies have identified many factors associated with neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, the way these genes shape neuroanatomical structure and connectivity is poorly understood. Recent research has focused on proteins that act as points of convergence for multiple factors, as these may provide greater insight into understanding the biology of neurodevelopmental disorders.

Effect of Sodium Benzoate vs Placebo Among Individuals With Early Psychosis: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: There is evidence that sodium benzoate (BZ) may be an effective adjunctive treatment for schizophrenia. The clinical efficacy of BZ has been investigated in chronic schizophrenia; however, the efficacy of this agent has not been studied in individuals with early psychosis.

Objective: To examine the clinical efficacy of the adjunctive use of BZ for symptoms in people with early psychosis.

Could Polygenic Risk Scores Be Useful in Psychiatry?: A Review.

Importance: Polygenic risk scores (PRS) are predictors of the genetic susceptibility to diseases, calculated for individuals as weighted counts of thousands of risk variants in which the risk variants and their weights have been identified in genome-wide association studies. Polygenic risk scores show promise in aiding clinical decision-making in many areas of medical practice. This review evaluates the potential use of PRS in psychiatry.

The association between lithium in drinking water and neuropsychiatric outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis from across 2678 regions containing 113 million people.

Background: Lithium in drinking water may have significant mental health benefits. We investigated the evidence on the association between lithium concentrations in drinking water and their neuropsychiatric outcomes.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis and searched Pubmed, Embase, Web of Science, PsycINFO and CINAHL up to 19 January 2020, for peer-reviewed research examining the association between lithium concentrations in drinking water and neuropsychiatric outcomes.

From Basic Science to Clinical Application of Polygenic Risk Scores: A Primer.

Importance: Polygenic risk scores (PRS) are predictors of the genetic susceptibilities of individuals to diseases. All individuals have DNA risk variants for all common diseases, but genetic susceptibility differences between people reflect the cumulative burden of these. Polygenic risk scores for an individual are calculated as weighted counts of thousands of risk variants that they carry, where the risk variants and their weights have been identified in genome-wide association studies.

Availability of substances for use in personal vaporisers on three online cryptomarkets.

Background: Personal vaporisers are gaining popularity as an alternative route of administration for a range of substances. Online cryptomarkets are becoming increasingly popular among people who use substances due to their perceived anonymity, ease of use, and reduced risk of violence compared to traditional face-to-face dealers. We examined the diversity of substances marketed for use in a personal vaporiser on these marketplaces.

Maternal hypertensive disorders during pregnancy and the trajectories of offspring emotional and behavioral problems: the ALSPAC birth cohort study.

Purpose: This study examined the effect of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy on trajectories of emotional and behavioral problems in offspring.

Methods: We used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a prospective birth cohort study in Avon, United Kingdom. A group-based trajectory modeling was used to identify the distinct trajectories of emotional and behavioral problems in children at four time points: at age 3.

The cost of mental disorders: a systematic review.

Aims: To identify and synthesise the literature on the cost of mental disorders.

Methods: Systematic literature searches were conducted in the databases PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, EconLit, NHS York Database and PsychInfo using key terms for cost and mental disorders. Searches were restricted to January 1980-May 2019.

Comorbidity within mental disorders: a comprehensive analysis based on 145 990 survey respondents from 27 countries.

Aims: Epidemiological studies indicate that individuals with one type of mental disorder have an increased risk of subsequently developing other types of mental disorders. This study aimed to undertake a comprehensive analysis of pair-wise lifetime comorbidity across a range of common mental disorders based on a diverse range of population-based surveys.

Methods: The WHO World Mental Health (WMH) surveys assessed 145 990 adult respondents from 27 countries.

Perceived helpfulness of treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder: Findings from the World Mental Health Surveys.

Background: Perceived helpfulness of treatment is an important healthcare quality indicator in the era of patient-centered care. We examine probability and predictors of two key components of this indicator for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Methods: Data come from World Mental Health surveys in 16 countries.

The Economic Cost of Child and Adolescent Bullying in Australia.

Objective: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis and estimate the economic costs attributable to child and adolescent bullying victimization in Australia.

Method: The costs of bullying victimization were measured from a societal perspective that accounted for costs associated with health care, education resources, and productivity losses. A prevalence-based approach was used to estimate the annual costs for Australians who experienced bullying victimization in childhood and adolescence.

Randomized controlled trial of social cognition and interaction training compared to befriending group.

Background: Deficits in social cognition are common in people with schizophrenia and are associated with impaired functioning. Finding effective interventions to address these deficits is a priority. Social Cognition Interaction Training (SCIT) is a psychosocial intervention that has demonstrated acceptability and feasibility in various health care settings.

Association of Specific Mental Disorders With Premature Mortality in the Danish Population Using Alternative Measurement Methods.

Importance: The association of mental disorders with premature mortality published in the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) studies has been underestimated because these analyses have recommended using only a small number of mental disorders as causes of death to estimate years of life lost (YLL). Alternative methods have been introduced, such as estimating life-years lost (LYL), to compare individuals with mental disorders with the general population.

Objectives: To generate register-based YLL and LYL estimates and to use these measurement methods to assess the association of specific mental disorders with premature mortality.