news

Leading experts at the University of Birmingham and Tommy's National Centre for Miscarriage Research are calling on the UK government to invest in early pregnancy units and recurrent miscarriage clinics to end the current care and treatment postcode lottery. The calls come as the team has laid bare the devastating impact of miscarriage and sets out recommendations to improve treatment and care in a series of three articles published today in The Lancet.

People with pre-existing mental health conditions have reported challenges posed by the COVID-19 lockdowns, such as the loss of normal coping routines, barriers to accessing care, and unequal impacts of the pandemic, in a new study led by UCL researchers. The qualitative, interview-based study, published in Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology , shows that the impacts of lockdown were not distributed equally, and people in ethnic minority groups reported particular challenges.

Older people in England with physical disabilities were more likely to have worse mental health and to feel lonelier during the Covid-19 pandemic than able bodied people - with more support required to address this during and after the pandemic - according to a new UCL study. Research published today in The  Lancet Public Health found that those with a disability experienced greater increases in depression and anxiety than people without a disability, as well as poorer psychological wellbeing, quality of life and sleep, in addition to lower levels of social contact.

Children experiencing cognitive problems such as low attention, poor memory or lack of inhibition may later suffer mental health issues as teenagers and young adults, a new study reveals. Targeting specific markers in childhood for early treatment may help to minimise the risk of children developing certain psychopathological problems in adolescence and adult life, such as borderline personality disorder, depression and psychosis.

One in three COVID-19 survivors received a neurological or psychiatric diagnosis within six months of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus, an observational study of more than 230,000 patient health records published in The Lancet Psychiatry journal estimates. The study looked at 14 neurological and mental health disorders.

Sleep experts have developed a new tool to help more accurately measure young people's ability to disengage from social media before bed. The University of Glasgow researchers who developed the Index of Nighttime Offline Distress, or iNOD, believe it is the first psychological measurement tool of its kind, which reflects the realities of how young people interact with each other in an online world.

Using a simple set of hand signals can improve the experience of online meetings, make groups feel closer to each other and that they are learning and communicating better, finds a new study by UCL researchers. The research team trained students to use a set of signals in seminars, such as waving to take a turn to speak, and raising a hand to show empathy, and found evidence that they improved the experience of video meetings during lockdown.

Research from Bath psychologists suggests schools could introduce quieter alternatives to playtime to help children with Developmental Language Disorder. Last updated on Wednesday 31 March 2021 Children with a common but regularly undiagnosed disorder affecting their language and communication are likely to be finding the transition back to school post-lockdown harder than most, according to a team of psychologists.

Triggering? 'bad' 'memories' 'to? 'reactivate' 'in? 'REM' 'sleep' '-? 'the' 'period' 'when' 'people' 'dream' 'most' 'vividly' '-' 'reduces' 'the? 'emotion' 'associated' 'with' 'these' 'memories' 'on? 'waking,' 'a? 'new' 'study' 'has? 'suggested.' - It? 'is' 'the' 'first' 'research' 'to' 'suggest' 'this' 'technique' 'could' 'have' 'potential' 'for' 'use' 'as' 'a' 'tool' 'for? 'the' 'treatment' 'of? -'anxiety' 'disorders,' 'potentially' 'including' ''post-traumatic' 'stress' 'disorder' -(PTSD).

A new Lancet Psychiatry article highlights concerns over a commonly-used autism screening tool, 'AQ-10'. Last updated on Friday 19 March 2021 Reporting in the Lancet Psychiatry today, psychologists at the University of Bath highlight that a widely used technique for autism screening is being misused, which may have prevented many people from receiving an autism diagnosis over the past decade.

Mental health problems often emerge during adolescence, but it is still not fully understood why teenagers are so vulnerable to psychiatric illnesses, says Dr Tobias Hauser (UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology). Adolescence is the time when most mental health problems arise. Diagnoses of psychiatric illnesses increase across the board, with teenagers suffering not only from mood disorders such as depression, but also from the most pervasive psychiatric illnesses, such as schizophrenia or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Almost 60% of frontline health and social care workers (HSCWs) experienced a mental health disorder during the first COVID-19 lockdown, with many suffering "very high rates of distress", suggests a new study led by researchers at UCL and the University of Haifa, Israel.

People who stop smoking may experience improvements in their mental health such as reductions in anxiety and depression symptoms, finds research carried out in collaboration with the University of Birmingham. Led by the University of Bath, in collaboration with the Universities of Birmingham, Oxford and New York, the Cochrane Review found that those who quit smoking are not likely to experience a worsening in their mood long-term, whether they have a mental health condition or not.

Stopping smoking leads to healthier, wealthier and happier lives say researchers from University of Bath's Addiction & Mental Health Group. Last updated on Wednesday 10 March 2021 New evidence published today in the Cochrane Library suggests that smokers who quit can feel the positive benefits within weeks.

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome are at a significantly increased risk of contracting COVID-19 than women without the condition, new research led by the University of Birmingham has revealed. Researchers are now calling for healthcare policy to specifically encourage women with PCOS to adhere to COVID-19 infection control measures while the global pandemic continues.

The speed at which we produce facial expressions plays an important role in our ability to recognise emotions in others, according to new research at the University of Birmingham. A team in the University's School of Psychology carried out research which showed that people tend to produce happy and angry expressions more rapidly, while sad expressions are produced more slowly.

Campaigners used quasi-religious and mythological themes to create a 'Brexit religion' with the National Health Service (NHS) at its heart - persuading people to support Britain's withdrawal from the European Union, according to a new study. The Leave campaign's promise to 'take back control' used the NHS as the country's Holy Grail that could be rescued from malign European forces that threatened Britain's unique historical place in the world.

Fake news stories are more likely to be believed and consequently shared on social media if readers think they have seen them before, research suggests. Academics at Cardiff University's Crime and Security Research Institute say their report offers insights into the reasons why seemingly outlandish claims on social media can gain traction.

Boys who regularly play video games at age 11 are less likely to develop depressive symptoms three years later, finds a new study led by a UCL researcher. The study, published in Psychological Medicine , also found that girls who spend more time on social media appear to develop more depressive symptoms.

Lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB*) people are significantly more likely to have mental health conditions and report alcohol and drug misuse than heterosexual people - finds a new study led by UCL researchers in collaboration with the University of East Anglia and City, University. The findings, published today in  Psychological Medicine , come despite apparently more tolerant societal attitudes towards same-sex relationships.