Eduard Vieta

Using clinical and genetic data from more than 10,000 Australians with depression, an international team has found that nearly 25 per cent suffered from what they have termed ‘circadian depression’ – a subtype previously proposed by the scientific community that is characterised by disrupted sleep-wake cycles, reduced daytime activity and low energy levels. In the study, those identified as having this form of depression reported an earlier age of onset, more severe clinical features and weight gain during depressive episodes. The authors, whose study is published in The British Journal of Psychiatry, state that these findings “support the apparent validity and potential clinical utility of a circadian subtype of depression as a clinical profile”.

The hallucinogen psilocybin, found in certain mushrooms, is being investigated as a treatment for conditions such as depression. A study published in Nature Communications shows that a single 25 mg dose of the compound can produce brain changes lasting up to a month after administration. These were measured using neuroimaging techniques in 28 healthy adults who had never taken psychedelics. In terms of psychological effects, participants showed increased cognitive flexibility, psychological insight, and well-being after one month.

A review published in The Lancet Psychiatry has examined the prevalence of major depressive disorder during pregnancy, the peripartum period—immediately before and after childbirth—and the postpartum period—up to twelve months after childbirth. The study, which used data from more than two million women and girls aged 10 to 59 from all regions of the world, showed that approximately one in 15 (6.8%) is affected by major depression during the year following childbirth and that the prevalence was highest during the first two weeks after childbirth (8.3%). The authors call for greater integration of screening, prevention, and treatment of this disorder during the peripartum period into current care models.

The study of psychedelic drugs in pharmacological treatments had its eureka moment with chemist Albert Hofmann's famous bike ride under the influence of LSD in 1938 and then developed over decades, but with Richard Nixon it was shelved. In recent years, it has resurfaced in hospitals and laboratories around the world. Last week, the Congress of Deputies hosted a conference on these substances. We explain what they are, what they are used for, the current state of research, and their risks, with the help of expert sources.

The American Psychiatric Association has unveiled the new features of the forthcoming Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in five articles published in The American Journal of Psychiatry. Among the highlights are the proposed change of name — it will become the Diagnostic and Scientific Manual — and the intention for it to be more dynamic, incorporating biomarkers for diagnosis and integrating the socioeconomic, cultural and environmental determinants of health. According to the authors, the aim is to enable a more personalised and inclusive clinical practice, aligned with scientific rigour. The most recent update was published in 2022 with the DSM-5-TR, and specialists are currently unaware of the date of the next edition, as they reported during a briefing with journalists.

Consuming up to four cups of coffee a day is associated with an increase in telomere length in people with severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Telomere length is an indicator of cellular ageing and is shorter in people with these disorders, although the causes are not clearly understood. According to the study, published in BMJ Mental Health, the effect shown is comparable to ‘a biological age five years younger’ in coffee drinkers. 

Different antidepressant drugs cause different side effects in the body, in parameters such as heart rate, blood pressure or body weight, according to a meta-analysis published by The Lancet. For example, agomelatine administration is associated with weight loss, while other molecules such as maprotiline are associated with weight gain. The research brings together 151 studies and 17 reports from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), including more than 58,000 people and comparing 30 antidepressant drugs with a placebo.

Until now, perceived well-being followed a U-shaped curve depending on age, declining – due to worry, stress or depression – until people reached middle age, around 50, and then rebounding into old age. With malaise, the U is inverted and we talk about the ‘unhappiness curve’, shaped like a hump. Now, research published in PLOS One with data from the US and the UK claims that this age-related malaise is declining and that there is no longer such a hump. The reason for the change is said to be the deterioration of mental health among young people, especially those under 25. The study also includes data from 44 countries between 2020 and 2025, including Spain, and confirms that the malaise no longer takes the form of a hump, but decreases with age.

An oral formulation of risperidone could be administered weekly instead of daily to treat patients with schizophrenia with the same efficacy, according to a phase III clinical trial published in The Lancet Psychiatry. The study included 83 patients in the United States.

The U.S. FDA has approved a new drug—called Cobenfy—to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia. Unlike traditional treatments, which are based on blocking the effects of dopamine, its mechanism of action simulates the effects of another neurotransmitter, acetylcholine. It is the first drug to be approved with a different mechanism of action in over 70 years.