Drugs & Medications

Lecanemab Linked to Lower Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Alzheimer’s

July 11, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 real-world cohort study in The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease found that lecanemab-treated Alzheimer’s patients had lower Neuropsychiatric Inventory scores over follow-up, and 6-month symptom reductions were associated with regional amyloid-beta positron emission tomography (PET) clearance. Key Findings 144 treated patients: The cohort included people with Alzheimer’s-related mild cognitive impairment or …

Cariprazine Linked to Obsessive-Compulsive Symptom Flare in Bipolar II Case Report

July 11, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 case study in Biomedical Reports described a 28-year-old woman with bipolar II disorder whose stable subclinical counting compulsion worsened and expanded into new obsessive-compulsive symptoms within 3 days of starting cariprazine, then returned near baseline within 7 days after the drug was stopped. Key Findings Single case report: The source described one …

Ketamine EEG Alpha Redundancy Tracked Depression Response in Late-Life TRD

July 10, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 study in Translational Psychiatry found that ketamine changed EEG-derived high-order brain interactions in late-life treatment-resistant depression, and a 24-hour increase in alpha-band redundancy tracked greater depression improvement by Day 7. Key Findings 30 analyzed participants: The secondary analysis compared 18 ketamine-treated and 12 midazolam-treated late-life veterans with treatment-resistant depression at baseline. Single …

ADHD Symptoms Linked to Cannabis Use Through CNR1-Rich Inhibitory-Control Regions

July 10, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 medRxiv preprint linked greater attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptom scores in college students to reduced stop-signal functional MRI (fMRI) activation in cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1R)-rich brain regions, and that reduced activation predicted heavier cannabis-use trajectories over 4 years. Key Findings ADHD-cannabis trajectory: Researchers analyzed cannabis-use trajectories in 466 first-year college students aged 18-19, …

Review Identified Different Depression Treatment Targets in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s

July 10, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 narrative review in Molecular Psychiatry argues that depression in Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease follows disease-specific brain mechanisms, while standard antidepressant evidence remains weak in these neurodegenerative populations. Key Findings 42% in Alzheimer’s disease: The review cites depressive syndromes affecting about 42% of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and 35% of patients with …

Endocannabinoid CB-1 Receptor Blockade and CBD Reduced Animal Alcohol Intake

July 10, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis in Molecular Psychiatry found that CB-1 receptor blockade and cannabidiol reduced alcohol intake in animal models, but human alcohol-use-disorder evidence remained inconsistent and too thin to support a treatment claim. Key Findings 63 studies reviewed: Researchers synthesized 44 preclinical studies and 19 clinical or human experimental studies of …

Olanzapine-Samidorphan Linked to Depressive Symptoms in Case Report

July 10, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 study in International Clinical Psychopharmacology described a 40-year-old man whose dysphoria, anhedonia, amotivation, and fatigue appeared soon after olanzapine was changed to olanzapine-samidorphan and resolved after he returned to olanzapine alone. Key Findings One-patient case report: The report followed a 40-year-old man after first psychiatric hospitalization, so the evidence is a clinical …

Depression Transition Risk Increased After Bipolar Manic or Mixed Episodes

July 10, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 medRxiv retrospective cohort study found that depression often followed bipolar manic or mixed episodes quickly, with 25% of manic episodes and 22% of mixed episodes transitioning to depression within 1 month. Key Findings First-month risk window: Researchers analyzed 10,437 people, 42,314 mood episodes, and 90,727 person-years in a U.S. electronic health record …

Subcutaneous Ketamine Response Faded After Treatment-Resistant Depression Extension

July 10, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 study in The British Journal of Psychiatry found that 4 weeks of twice-weekly subcutaneous racemic ketamine helped a minority of people with treatment-resistant depression, but response fell from 30% at treatment end to 17% 4 weeks later. Key Findings 130 trial participants entered the extension: All had treatment-resistant depression and a Montgomery-Asberg …

Medicaid and Benzodiazepines Predicted Persistent Opioid Use After Surgery

July 9, 2026 by BrainASAP

TL;DR: A 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis in Pain Medicine found that Medicaid enrollment and preoperative benzodiazepine use had the largest pooled associations with new persistent opioid use after surgery among opioid-naive US adults. Key Findings 27 cohort studies: The review included US adult surgical studies that separated opioid-naive patients from those using opioids before …

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