Psychiatry and Mental Health

Host: Cathleen Margolin, PhD

Guest: Richard A. Friedman, MD

The continued growth of the Internet, and its increasing pervasiveness in our lives, has many of us considering how we might incorporate Web-based avenues of communication in our practice. The ease and convenience of e-mail, for example, is tempting, but could also open up a Pandora's box. Does e-mail inherently pose new challenges that may not be an issue with phone dialogue or in-person discussion? Dr. Richard Friedman, professor of clinical psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College and a regular contributor to the New York Times, shares his experience with e-mail in his practice and a few tips for those who use or are contemplating Web communication for their practice. Dr. Cathleen Margolin hosts.

Host: Lee Freedman, MD

Guest: Murray Raskind, MD

The sleep disruptions and irritability that often affect patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be challenging to treat with traditional psychotherapy or pharmacologic treatments. Host Dr. Lee Freedman welcomes Dr. Murray Raskind, professor and vice-chairman in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington School of Medicine, to discuss the benefits of using prazosin to treat PTSD symptoms.

Host: Cathleen Margolin, PhD

Guest: Henry T. Greely, JD

How might society best respond to the growing demand for cognitive-enhancing drugs by healthy individuals? That's the overriding question posed in a recent article published in Nature, written by a team of authors led by Henry Greely, professor of law and director of the Center for Law and the Biosciences at Stanford University. Mr. Greely joins host Dr. Cathleen Margolin to evaluate the appeal and the risks of drug-propelled cognitive enhancement, from safety considerations for healthy individuals using such medications, to the fairness of comparing the achievements of those who use versus those who do not, and the potential for coercion by superiors aiming, in theory, for enhanced performance from subordinates. One other question they will consider: is there a moral difference between cognitive enhancement through pharmaceuticals versus enhancement through sleep or nutritionally beneficial food products?

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD

Guest: Benjamin Griffith, MD

What is the connection between anxiety and pancreatic cancer? Certainly, patients can develop problems with anxiety after a cancer diagnosis. But pancreatic cancer seems to have the curious characteristic of anxiety as a presenting symptom. The age at which anxiety presents itself may be a clue as to whether you're looking at mental illness or a possible cancer diagnosis. Dr. Benjamin Griffith, assistant professor of medicine at the University of Virginia and the Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine, explains to host Dr. Leslie Lundt.

Host: Leslie P. Lundt, MD

Guest: Aviva Abosch, MD, PhD

Increasingly, depression is viewed a systems-level disorder. For patients who are refractory to the all traditional therapies, surgery on the brain may be answer. What are the benefits, and how is psychosurgery different than it was 50 years ago? Dr. Leslie Lundt is joined by Dr. Aviva Abosch, director of the Epilepsy and Functional Neurosurgery Program, and assistant professor in the department of neurosurgery, at the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis.

Host: Lee Freedman, MD

Guest: Raymond Levy, PsyD

Guest: John Stuart Ablon, PhD

Psychoanalysis and dynamic psychotherapy have been criticized as too time-consuming, costly and even ineffective. Dr. Raymond Levy and Dr. Stewart Ablon, of the Psychotherapy Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, discuss their recent evidence-based research into these long-term therapies. What differentiates psychoanalysis and dynamic psychotherapy from other types of therapy, and are these therapies more effective for specific disorders? Dr. Lee Freedman hosts.

Host: Jennifer Shu, MD, FAAP

Guest: Norman Rosenthal, MD

The condition we now know as seasonal affective disorder (SAD) was first recognized in the early 1980s, when some patients were noted to have symptoms of depression only during the winter months. How does seasonal depression differ from other conditions such as major depression or bipolar disorder? Dr. Norman Rosenthal, a former senior researcher in psychiatry and psychobiology at the National Institute of Mental Health and one of the world's foremost experts on SAD, details the clinical profile of this disorder and describes light therapy and other potential treatments with host Dr. Jennifer Shu. Because there are some similarities between SAD and full depression, is it possible that light therapies or other SAD treatments would be effective for patients with year-round symptoms or bipolar disorder?

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD

Guest: Anne Marie Albano, PhD, ABPP

For the last several years, the mainstays of treatment for children with anxiety disorders have varied among practitioners, but few attempts have been made to evaluate their comparative or combinatorial effectiveness. Dr. Anne Marie Albano, associate professor of clinical psychology in psychiatry and director of the Clinic for Anxiety and Related Disorders in the division of child and adolescent psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center, shares the outcomes of her research comparing cognitive behavioral therapy with medication in treating anxiety disorders in children. Dr. Albano discusses these two forms of therapy, both in isolation and combined, to treat a variety of problems, such as generalized anxiety disorder and social phobias. Dr. Bill Rutenberg hosts.

Host: Bill Rutenberg, MD

Guest: Stephen Whiteside, PhD, LP

Should exposure therapy be added to a mental health practitioner's arsenal of treatment techniques for anxiety disorders in children? Dr. Stephen Whiteside, assistant professor of psychology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, explores the merits and limitations of this therapeutic approach, with recommendations for selecting patients who stand to benefit most. Hosted by Dr. Bill Rutenberg.

Host: Lee Freedman, MD

Guest: Steven Dubovsky, MD

How have neurosurgical procedures for psychiatric conditions advanced since the development of the lobotomy? Which types of neurosurgical procedures are best for treating depression or obsessive-compulsive disorder? Dr. Steven Dubovsky, professor and chair of the department of psychiatry at the State University New York at Buffalo, explains lesioning surgeries, vegus nerve stimulation and deep brain stimulation for treating depression. Dr. Lee Freedman hosts. Can these procedures cure patients of their psychiatric conditions?