Childhood Abuse Linked to Brain Structure Differences in One of the Largest Imaging Studies of Its Kind
A UCLA-led team working with the international ENIGMA Consortium analyzed MRI scans from 3,711 people across eight countries, comparing each brain against a reference "growth chart" of typical development. More severe reported childhood abuse was linked to larger-than-expected volumes in two deep brain regions (the thalamus and pallidum), a thinner isthmus cingulate cortex, and changes in a frontal region tied to emotion and decision-making, with the strongest patterns in young women aged 18 to 35. This was a cross-sectional study in which each person was scanned once, so it shows an association rather than proof that abuse caused the differences, and abuse history was recalled from memory years later.
Source: Medical Daily
Emotional Blunting Is Common in Depression and Bipolar Disorder, Even After Symptoms Ease
In a study of 106 Thai outpatients receiving treatment for depression, more than half reported emotional blunting — a dulling of emotional responses that covers apathy, loss of motivation, a reduced ability to feel pleasure, and emotional numbness. Rates did not differ significantly among people with major depressive disorder, persistent depressive disorder, and bipolar disorder, and 45 percent of patients whose depression was in remission still reported it. Because emotional blunting is also a known side effect of some antidepressants, the study cannot fully separate residual symptoms from medication effects. Published in BMC Psychiatry.
Source: PsyPost
Switching Schizophrenia Patients to Injections Didn't Lighten Family Caregivers' Load Any More Than Pills
A 48-week prospective cohort study in Guangdong Province, China followed 538 community-dwelling adults with schizophrenia — 270 on long-acting injectable paliperidone palmitate and 268 on daily oral antipsychotics — measuring family caregiver burden at five time points. Burden fell substantially in both groups (31 percent lower with pills, 39 percent with injections), but the statistical analysis found no clinically meaningful difference between the two trajectories; every comparison fell inside the researchers' threshold for what a caregiver would notice in daily life. The authors note the setting — a structured, fully subsidized community mental health program — may have done the work that injections are supposed to do, and that injectables remain a valuable option for patients who struggle with daily pills. Published in BMC Psychiatry.
Source: ScienMag