A White Paper entitled “Addressing Extremism” authored by The Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (ICAR), George Mason University’s Dr Andrea Bartoli, and Dr. Peter T. Coleman, ICCCR, Teachers College, Columbia University, attempts to analyze the nature of extremism both in general and in the particular form that is radicalizing many seemingly mentally healthy young […]
In an article appearing in the most recent issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (JAAPL) (September 1, 2015 vol. 43 no. 3 287-292), by Shulman, Hull, et al., entitled “Cognitive Fluctuations and the Lucid Interval in Dementia: Implications for Testamentary Capacity,” the authors introduce a significant new challenge […]
From The New York Times…</ Dr. Thomas R. Insel announced that he is stepping down after 13 years as director of the National Institute of Mental Health. By BENEDICT CAREY Published: Sept. 15, 2015 Dr. Thomas R. Insel announced that he is stepping down after 13 years as director of the National Institute of Mental […]
An interesting finding: According to a recent Huffington Post article, “Depression Literally Colors the Way We See the World,” feeling states affect our capacity to perceive color tones. This article was based upon a scientific study that was published recently in the journal Psychological Science entitled “Sadness Impairs Color Perception.” As supportive anecdotal evidence, an […]
On the August 29, 2015 New York Times op ed page, Jeffrey Lieberman, MD, Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, wrote an op-ed article entitled “How to Halt the Violence.” It is a superb effort to address head on the pointless 24 hour news cycle hand wringing […]
An interesting study of the sociology of antidepressants performed by researchers at University College London and Oxford University was published in the journal Cell Biology. Researchers found that a serotonergic antidepressant drug (citalopram – Celexa) increased the desire to avoid harm to oneself and creased the tendency to inflict harm on others and a dopaminergic […]
In an intriguing June 23, 2015 New York Times article with the provocative title, “Can the Bacteria In Your Gut Explain Your Mood,” the science journalist Peter Andrey Smith explores the hypothesis that among the myriad of microbes in our intestines, some manufacture neurochemicals that may well affect the neurochemistry in our brains just as […]
fpamed Forensic neuropsychologist Ronald Roberts PhD and Forensic Psychiatrist Mark Levy MD, DLFAPA presented on July 2, 2015 to the National CDL Practice Group of the Seyfarth Shaw, LLP law firm, a discussion entitled “Assessing Emotional Damages Claims of a Population in Multi-Plaintiff Litigation.” A pdf of the powerpoint slides for that presentation can be […]
The following is a post from the Psychiatric Times LinkedIn page byJohn Liebert, MD CM Psychiatrist in Scottsdale, Arizona. Following his post, Mark Levy MD has added a lengthy comment The Trial of James Holmes “Despite that hurdle for prosecutors, legal observers say Mr. Holmes’s lawyers are facing huge obstacles. For weeks, people who lost […]
The following article from the newspaper of the American Psychiatric Association is a follow up on previous blog posts on this fpamed.com site concerning the GermanWings crash, pilot depression and cockpit screening for potentially dangerous signs of mental illness. From the American Psychiatric Association’s PsychiatricNews: by Aaron Levin, 07 May 2015 No evaluation process is […]
Forensic psychiatrist Mark Levy MD was recently interviewed by a San Francisco Fox News affiliate KTVU reporter, Rob Ross, to comment on a new plan by the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) System to begin a suicide prevention program within BART stations where there have been a number of suicides recently. The interview can be […]
by Mark Levy MD Medical Director fpamed The New York Times lead article on Sunday April 19, 2015 was headlined “Germanwings Crash Exposes History of Denial of Risk of Pilot Suicide” Germanwings Crash Expose…t Suicide – NYTimes What is most shocking among the revelations contained in this article is that there have been rare but […]
by Mark I Levy MD Forensic Psychiatrist Medical Director fpamed Assistant Clinical Professor, Psychiatry, UCSF School of Medicine Two articles in the March 31, 2015 New York Times revealed that Andreas Lubitz, the presumed suicidal co-pilot who appears to have intentionally crashed a Germanwings aircraft into the French Alps last week, murdering all 149 passengers […]
Charles Saldanha, MD Forensic Psychiatrist Asst. Clinical Professor, Psychiatry, UCSF That the co-pilot at the controls of the Germanwings airliner did not fully disclose his mental health condition is tragic, but not surprising. The current reliance on self-report of mental health diagnoses and treatment is likely to generate many false negatives. People with mental health […]
Mark I Levy MD Forensic Psychiatrist Medical Director Forensic Psychiatric Associates, LP Asst. Clinical Professor, Psychiatry, UCSF School of Medicine According to a March 28, 2015 article in the New York Times, the co-pilot who locked the pilot out of the cockpit and deliberately crashed a German Wings aircraft flying from Spain to Germany, killing […]
The Journal of Sexual Medicine reported today that moderate regular exercise is linked to improved erectile function in men. Exercise Linked to Improved Erectile and Sexual Function in Men Released: 23-Mar-2015 5:00 AM EDT Source Newsroom: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Citations Journal of Sexual Medicine Newswise — LOS ANGELES (March 23, 2015) – Men who exercise […]
According to an article in Medical Press dated March 3, 2015, One-quarter of the health plans being sold on health insurance exchanges set up through the Affordable Care Act offer benefits that appear to violate a federal law requiring equal benefits for general medical and mental health care, according to new research led by the […]
from the American Psychiatric Association headlines February 25, 2015 Leading The News California Report Slams Kaiser Permanente For Long Delays For Mental Health Care Treatment. The Los Angeles Times (2/25, Pfeifer, Terhune) reports that in a report released Feb. 24, the California Department of Managed Health Care “slammed HMO giant Kaiser Permanente for causing mental […]
The authoritative Institute of Medicine (part of the distinguished National Academies of Science, Engineering, Institute of Medicine and National Research Council) convened a high level commission to review Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. They have modified the diagnostic criteria as described below. Psychiatry Advisor reported on February 24, 2015: The IOM report lays out new diagnostic criteria […]
The following article by Norko and Buchanan from The Journal of Psychiatric Practice describes the purpose and structure of a well written forensic psychiatric report. J Psychiatr Pract. 2015 Jan;21(1):67-71. doi: 10.1097/01.pra.0000460623.40923.47. The forensic psychiatric report. Norko MA1, Buchanan MA. Author information Abstract The construction of a written forensic report is a core component of […]
fpamed Forensic Psychiatrist and Addiction Medicine specialist, David Y. Kan, MD, an officer of the California Society of Addiction Medicine (CSAM), has developed a tool to assist consumers to evaluate and compare the addiction and mental health treatment benefit features of the major health insurance plans on sale to the public in California. CSAM is […]
Experts for the plaintiffs were prepared to testify that Zoloft caused birth defects in humans, but US District Judge Cynthia Rufe found the scientific opinion supporting the connection to be unreliable and inadmissible during trial. Read article here: Expert Testimony in Zolo…ible | ExpertPages Blog
In the wake of Robin William’s tragic death, Professor Kay Jamison PhD wrote a stunning piece on depression and suicide in the NYTimes on 8/15/14 (see http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/16/opinion/depression-can-be-treated-but-it-takes-competence.html?module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3As%2C%7B%221%22%3A%22RI%3A5%22%7D&_r=0) Her basic premise is that suicidal depression is treatable but it requires a competent psychiatrist. Furthermore, mental health treaters are a heterogeneous lot and there is no consistency of […]
The US Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of the California law banning the use of so-called “reparative” psycho-therapies with minors, thus permitting the existing law to stand. So-called “reparative” therapies lack scientific validation but are popular particularly among some politically conservative religious groups who believe that homosexuality is a volitional “choice” that can […]
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