Leo Sher, M.D. Our research report, “Pleiotropy of the serotonin transporter gene for seasonality and neuroticism” was published 20 years ago in the September 2000 issue of Psychiatric Genetics (1). Pleiotropy refers to the ability of a single gene to influence multiple traits. A polymorphism in the regulatory region of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) […]
Leo Sher, M.D. Today, September 17, 2020 is the third Annual National Physician Suicide Awareness Day in the U.S. Each physician suicide is a devastating loss affecting family, friends, and colleagues. The Day is dedicated to honoring the memory of colleagues who have died by suicide and to continue to raise awareness and discussion on […]
Leo Sher, M.D. Expertscape, a leading international rating agency, published a September 2020 list of top world experts in the field of suicidology (1). The list is based on 26,778 articles published since 2010. According to Expertscape, the 20 leading world experts on suicide are: Maurizio Pompili (Italy) – top 0.0016% of published authors worldwide […]
Keerthika Mathialagan, M.B.B.S., Steven Lippmann, M.D. To remain socially connected amid COVID-19 stay-at-home measures, many people utilize virtual platforms through online gaming. Approximately two-thirds of all Americans play video games daily, and quarantining measures increased usage of such online practices to facilitate peer relationships (1). The World Health Organization and numerous gaming companies promote initiatives […]
Leo Sher, M.D. My theoretical paper, “The concept of post-traumatic mood disorder” was published 15 years ago in a 2005 issue of Medical Hypotheses (1). In my paper, I proposed that some or all individuals diagnosed with comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression have a separate psychobiological condition that can be termed “posttraumatic mood […]
Lalasa Doppalapudi, M.D., Steven Lippmann, M.D. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a coronavirus infection originating in China and spreading globally. By mid-August 2020, over 21 million confirmed COVID cases were reported, with more than 760,000 deaths (1). As the pandemic expanded, psychiatric issues and increasingly frequent suicides became evident. Suicide rates and telephone calls to suicide […]
Keerthika Mathialagan, M.B.B.S., Steven Lippmann, M.D. The COVID-19 pandemic has critical implications for mental health and personal well-being. Beyond the acute stress and anxiety aroused by this disease, the quarantine measures and economic shortages have increased depression, drug abuse, suicide, and domestic violence rates (1). Stay-at-home measures cause harmful psychological repercussions among susceptible populations, for […]
Leo Sher, M.D. Our research work, “Non-suicidal self-injurious behavior, endogenous opioids and monoamine neurotransmitters” was published 10 years ago in the July 2010 issue of the Journal of Affective Disorders (1). The objective of the study was to examine the role of endogenous opioids and monoamine neurotransmitters in non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI). We compared cerebrospinal fluid […]
Leo Sher, M.D. My research article, “Relation between rates of suicide in 15-24-year-olds and per capita consumption of alcohol beverages in European countries” was published 15 years ago in the July-September 2005 issue of the International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health (1). In this study, I examined the relation between rates of suicide in […]
Leo Sher, M.D. A research report, “Neurological and neuropsychiatric complications of COVID-19 in 153 patients: a UK-wide surveillance study” has been published in the Lancet Psychiatry online ahead of print (1). The aim of this study was to investigate complications of COVID-19 that affected the brain. British scientists developed an online network of rapid-response case […]
