A state-of-the-art overview of schizophrenia and psychosis in later life, translating present-day knowledge into clinical practice.

Schizophrenia, which starts in middle age or late life, has been described as 'the darkest area of psychiatry.' It is certainly controversial, with much disagreement about cut-off ages, diagnostic criteria and nomenclature. The contributors to this unique and very important book represent views from Europe and North America as well as Australia, Japan, and Nepal; they come from backgrounds of clinical practice and research. The contributors and editors were motivated by common aims: to review current international knowledge about late onset schizophrenia, to debate issues of heterogenity, gender, brain maturation and aging, putative structural and functional cerebral substrates for psychosis, to reach consensus on diagnosis and terminology, and to future research directions. The resulting book is an unqualified success which as well as being invaluable in old age psychiatry, sheds light on all aspects of schizophrenia treatment and research.

Part of the authoritative Oxford Textbooks in Psychiatry series, Oxford Textbook of Old Age Psychiatry, Third Edition has been thoroughly updated to reflect the developments in old age psychiatry since publication of the Second Edition in 2013, and remains an essential reference for anyone interested in the mental health care of older people.

Written specifically with sufferers and carers in mind, to help them understand and apply the basic concepts of cognitive therapy for psychosis, this title illustrates what it is like to have common psychosis and how people's lives can be restored using therapy.

These guidelines from NICE set out clear recommendations, based on the best available evidence, for health care professionals on how to work with and implement physical, psychological and service-level interventions for people with various mental health conditions.The book contains the full guidelines that cannot be obtained in print anywhere else. It brings together all of the evidence that led to the recommendations made, detailed explanations of the methodology behind their preparation, plus an overview of the condition covering detection, diagnosis and assessment, and the full range of treatment and care approaches. There is a worse prognosis for psychosis and schizophrenia when onset is in childhood or adolescence, and this new NICE guideline puts much-needed emphasis on early recognition and assessment of possible psychotic symptoms. For the one-third of children and young people who go on to experience severe impairment as a result of psychosis or schizophrenia the guideline also offers comprehensive advice from assessment and treatment of the first episode through to promoting recovery.This guideline reviews the evidence for recognition and management of psychosis and schizophrenia in children and young people across the care pathway, encompassing access to and delivery of services, experience of care, recognition and management of at-risk mental states, psychological and pharmacological interventions, and improving cognition and enhancing engagement with education and employment.

This is a major international textbook for psychiatrists and other professionals working in the field of mental healthcare. With contributions from opinion-leaders from around the globe, this book will appeal to those in training as well as to those further along the career path seeking a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of effective clinical practice backed by research evidence. The book is divided into cohesive sections moving from coverage of the tools and skills of the trade, through descriptions of the major psychiatric disorders and on to consider special topics and issues surrounding service organization. The final important section provides a comprehensive review of treatments covering all of the major modalities. Previously established as the Essentials of Postgraduate Psychiatry, this new and completely revised edition is the only book to provide this depth and breadth of coverage in an accessible, yet authoritative manner.

Interrogating the relationship between women and psychosis from a variety of perspectives, this edited collection explores personal, literary, spiritual, psychological, biological, and psychodynamic approaches. The contributors reflect on medieval mystics and witches, postpartum psychosis, disordered eating, art and literature, feminism, and male/female differences in schizophrenia. Women with experience of psychosis, psychotherapists, and a shaman provide first-person accounts to give the book a personal grounding. Curated with the intent to expand the way we think about women and psychosis, the contributors to this collection recognize that “voices and visions” do not occur in a vacuum, but are experienced within, and are influenced by, particular socio-cultural contexts.

Psychotic Disorders: Comprehensive Conceptualization and Treatments emphasizes a dimensional approach to psychosis--one of the most fascinating manifestations of altered brain behavior--that cuts across a broad array of psychiatric diagnoses from schizophrenia to affective psychosis and organic disorders like epilepsy and dementias. Written by an international roster of over seventy leading experts in the field, this volume comprehensively reviews, critiques, and integrates available knowledge on the etiology, mechanisms, and treatments of psychotic disorders, and outlines ways forward in both research and clinical practice towards more objective, mechanistically-based definitions of psychotic disorders. Chapters address topics such as psychosis phenomenology, biomarkers and treatments, the overlaps and interfaces between psychiatric disorders within the psychosis dimension, and novel disease definitions. Furthermore, the volume incorporates findings on potential mechanisms, bridges between various system levels (i.e., genetic, epigenetic, molecular and cellular, brain circuit and function, psychological, social, environmental and cultural) and their interactions, as well as the potential role in causation and/or mediation in psychotic disorders. Finally, the volume outlines a broad array of treatment approaches, from the readily available (e.g., psychopharmacology, various modalities of psychotherapy) to the experimental (e.g., cognitive interventions, neuromodulation). With a concluding section of forward perspectives conjecturing future directions and related challenges, this book aspires to stimulate new knowledge, generate novel frameworks, and carry new directions forward on psychotic disorders.

This manual attempts to provide simple, adequate and evidence-based information to health care professionals in primary health care especially in low- and middle-income countries to be able to provide pharmacological treatment to persons with mental disorders. The manual contains basic principles of prescribing followed by chapters on medicines used in psychotic disorders; depressive disorders; bipolar disorders; generalized anxiety and sleep disorders; obsessive compulsive disorders and panic attacks; and alcohol and opioid dependence. The annexes provide information on evidence retrieval, assessment and synthesis and the peer view process.

Over the next 30 years, the number of chronically mentally ill people 55 years of age and older will double. With multiple disorders relating to mental illness and old age, this population will require unique services from a health care system that is ill prepared to deliver them. This is the first major multidisciplinary reference on this important topic. Coverage includes information on demographic and clinical characteristics of older schizophrenic persons, treatment approaches, research strategies, and economic and health policy issues.