QAnxiety

12/15/2025

The FDA has approved the FL-100 transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS) system (by Flow Neuroscience) for adults with moderate-to-severe major depressive disorder, either as monotherapy or adjunctive treatment in non–treatment-refractory cases.

In a randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial of 174 adults, participants self-administered tDCS at home under remote supervision. Active treatment resulted in significantly greater symptom improvement, with higher clinical response (58% vs 38%) and remission (45% vs 22%) rates compared with sham.

New treatments such as tDCS become increasingly important as the prevalence of depression has increased 60% over the past decade, with around one-third of patients not achieving remission with first-line treatments. This approval represents an important step toward accessible, non-pharmacologic, home-based neuromodulation therapy in mental health care.

11/26/2025

A recent study by Calderaro et al., 2025 looked at how dopamine system function relates specifically to social anxiety symptoms in adolescents. Using neuromelanin-sensitive MRI (NM-MRI), a non-invasive proxy for midbrain dopamine activity, on 43 adolescents (mean age =12years), the study found that higher NM signal in the substantia nigra region were associated with more severe social anxiety, but not generalized anxiety symptoms.

Given that social anxiety often begins earlier in life and responds less robustly to exposure-based treatments, dopamine-related pathways may represent a promising target for future, more tailored interventions.

These preliminary findings suggest distinct neural mechanisms underlying social vs. generalized anxiety and highlight NM-MRI as a promising tool for probing dopamine-related etiological pathways and informing future targeted interventions in youth mental health.

See the article below for more information:

11/22/2025

Case study finds that Deep-Brain Stimulation leads to Major OCD Symptom Reduction:
A UCSF research team has reported a proof-of-concept clinical case demonstrating that patient-specific brain mapping can guide deep-brain stimulation (DBS) to achieve rapid and substantial reduction in severe, treatment-refractory OCD.

Using invasive electrophysiological mapping across the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) circuit, the research team identified individualized stimulation sites associated with acute symptom improvement. These data were used to precisely implant a DBS device targeting two nodes within the right ventral capsule, regions structurally connected to the orbitofrontal and cingulate cortices.

Following activation, the patient experienced a 62% reduction in OCD severity at 6 months, with rapid improvements noted shortly after stimulation began.

This case provides the first demonstration that invasive brain mapping can optimize DBS targeting for OCD, potentially enabling personalized neuromodulation in future patients. It also suggests that high-frequency neural activity in specific CSTC circuit nodes may correlate with symptom severity, offering a possible biomarker for future interventions.

For more information see the attached research paper:

Deep brain stimulation has been used to treat severe, refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with variable outcomes across multiple anatomical targets. To overcome these limitations, we developed an invasive brain mapping paradigm in which electrodes were implanted across the OCD cortico-str...

11/12/2025

A few weeks ago, our research team had the pleasure of attending the Canadian Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting in Vancouver, BC. It was an incredible opportunity to learn about the latest and emerging research and treatment modalities being implemented by psychiatrists across Canada. We were also honoured to share our group's work exploring serotonergic psychedelics for treating anxiety symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and other psychiatric conditions at this meeting.

11/08/2025

Great day of learning at the Centre for Psychedelics Health Research (CPHR) Annual Scientific Meeting at Providence Care Hospital.

09/19/2025

New OCD Research Findings:
A recent clinical trial published in the American Journal of Psychiatry by Stern et al., found that ondansetron (an anti-nausea drug) may help reduce OCD symptom severity in patients already taking serotonin reuptake inhibitors.

The study found:
- Participants with OCD who received ondansetron + SRI showed significant reductions in overall OCD severity as well as changes in brain connectivity linked to compulsive behaviours.

- Ondansetron alone was not found to improve OCD symptoms.

- This study highlights the potential of serotonin receptor modulation as strategy for treating treatment-resistant OCD.

For more information see:

Results of a new clinical trial shed light on mechanisms that may give rise to some of the repetitive behaviors experienced in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and Tourette’s disorder. The results also add to past evidence suggesting that an FDA-approved medicine called ondansetron, when added ...

09/09/2025

A summary of: Are Psychedelic Agents Ready for Prime Time as Stand-Alone Treatments?

An editorial by: Claudio N. Soares, MD,PhD, MBA
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In the 1950s and 1960s, psychedelic research was a growing field. Low-dose “psycholytic” therapy with L*D was used to help patients lower defences and access deeper emotions in psychotherapy, while higher-dose “psychedelic therapy” aimed to produce transformative, mystical experiences thought to support recovery from depression, anxiety, and even alcoholism. Although early reports were promising, many of these studies lacked rigorous controls, and when stricter trials failed to replicate the results, the field lost credibility and momentum.

Recently research on using psychedelics for mental health has reemerged, but with far more rigorous scientific methodology. A recent randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial by Robison et al., (2025) tested whether psychedelics can function as stand-alone treatments. The trial included 198 adults with moderate-to-severe generalized anxiety disorder, randomized to receive a single dose of pharmaceutical-grade L*D (MM120) at 25 -200 μg doses, or placebo. No psychotherapy was paired with the intervention.
Results were compelling: at 4 weeks, both the 100 μg and 200 μg doses showed significant reductions in anxiety symptoms. At 12 weeks, 65% of patients in the 100 μg group responded, and nearly half achieved remission. Improvements in depressive symptoms were also observed.

While questions remain about long-term durability, dropout rates, and how to integrate such treatments into clinical practice, this is the first trial to show that a psychedelic can produce substantial and lasting reductions in anxiety symptoms without psychotherapy. This marks a turning point in psychedelic science, moving it closer to mainstream psychiatry.

The link to the entire editorial:

If one sought psychological support in the 1950s and 1960s, there was a reasonable chance they would be offered lysergic acid diethylamide (L*D) to facilitate and enhance the depth of the psychotherapeutic experience. That practice became known as a psycholytic approach,1 in which L*D was...

06/18/2025

Congratulations, Queen's University!

The university achieves a fifth straight global top 10 ranking and the top spot in Canada for advancing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

06/13/2025

PGME convocation! Congratulations to all residents and fellows!

06/13/2025

Goodbye Brian Wilson! Thank you for all the advocacy for mental health.

05/16/2025

Ultrasound Brain Therapy Shows Promise Across Mental Health Disorders

A new pilot study led by researchers at UT Austin is showing exciting potential for a non-invasive brain stimulation therapy called transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS). This cutting-edge approach may help treat a wide range of psychiatric conditions, including depression, anxiety, PTSD, and bipolar disorder, by directly targeting deep brain structures involved in emotional regulation.

Unlike rTMS which only reaches surface brain areas, tFUS uses precise sound waves to reach the amygdala, a core emotional center of the brain linked to fear, anxiety, and negative mood.

In this study, researchers confirmed that tFUS could safely and effectively reduce amygdala activity in both healthy volunteers and people with psychiatric conditions. Then, in a 3-week trial, 29 participants received daily sessions of tFUS. Results showed significant reductions in emotional distress, with a moderate-to-large improvement in symptoms of depression, anxiety, and PTSD — all without major side effects.

These promising results support tFUS as a potential new treatment option for people who don’t respond well to traditional medications or therapy. While larger, controlled trials are still needed, this study opens the door to targeted, drug-free brain modulation for a wide range of mental health conditions.

For more information see the article itself:

Mood, anxiety, and trauma-related disorders (MATRDs) are highly prevalent and comorbid. A sizable number of patients do not respond to first-line treatments. Non-invasive neuromodulation is a second-line treatment approach, but current methods rely on cortical targets to indirectly modulate subcorti...

05/02/2025

Congratulations to Eknoor and Mariana who had their abstracts accepted to present posters in the Canadian Psychiatric Association Annual Conference 2025!