The Archives of Psychiatry

Depression is a common but serious mental disease that ranges widely in severity. It affects 5% of adults worldwide, and approximately 280 million people in the world suffer from the condition. The National Center for Health Statistics reported in 2019 that 2.8% of adults had symptoms of severe depression, 4.2% had moderate depression, and 11.5% had mild depression, in the two weeks recorded. One way to early detect symptoms of depression is to analyze what people are talking about - their conversations.

Practitioners working on the front lines with young children may feel pressure to advise, instruct, and intervene. Decades of research in contemporary developmental science point to an alternative approach termed “listening in.” This commentary will review evidence supporting this approach, showing its application in a common clinical scenario. It will root the approach in concepts of cultural difference and the importance of cultivating a sense of belonging.

Fatigue is among the most prevalent and debilitating non-motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD). In the focal article, “Screening cut-off scores for clinically significant fatigue in early Parkinson’s disease”, we discussed the challenges of evaluating fatigue in PD and proposed cut-off scores for select fatigue assessments. This commentary expands on the challenges of evaluating fatigue, especially when it presents alongside psychiatric symptoms. We examine and compare the similarities of fatigue and depression, anxiety, and apathy.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) remains a formidable challenge in neuroscience, with its complex pathology still lacking an effective cure. Recent research has highlighted the critical role of epigenetic regulation in AD, demonstrating how environmental factors and genetic predispositions influence disease progression at a molecular level. This commentary examines key advancements in AD-related epigenetic research, with a particular focus on histone deacetylases (HDACs) and adrenergic signaling-two mechanisms that have emerged as promising therapeutic targets for mitigating AD symptoms and slowing neurodegeneration.

Many adults with intellectual disabilities have serious behavioral problems, sometimes requiring medical intervention. To this end, it is essential to improve the medical care of this population because there is a very large disparity in the care offered to them compared to the general population. Challenging behaviors constitute a real challenge in supporting people with severe intellectual disabilities, which can cause great difficulty for individuals, institutions and psychiatric services.