We ask the big questions: Is topiramate a drug or a sugar? Do you need to use the FDA-approved combo pill for weight loss? And which of its 13 off-label psychiatric uses are ready for clinical practice?

A new study looked at what works best after two antidepressants have failed, and it claims to have found some surprising winners. We take a closer look at the data in the final episode of our two-part series on treatment resistant depression (see March 8 2021 for part 1).Published on: 3/3/21Duration:...

We unpack 6 studies of the hypnotic eszopiclone in depressive and anxiety disorders, and conclude that there’s more going on here than a simple benefit in sleep. Our word of the day tells us something about what’s missing in depression: Present moment awareness.Published On: 4/26/21Duration: 22 minutes, 52 secondsTranscript:We all know that...

18 experts weigh in on how they use antidepressants in bipolar II. Sleep onset latency is defined, and we uncover the neuropsychiatric effects of marijuana in adults.Published On: 4/19/2020Duration: 28 minutes, 11 secondsTranscript:Today, 18 experts weigh in on how they use antidepressants in bipolar II disorder.Welcome to the Carlat Psychiatry Podcast, keeping...

We look at three ways that the body influences psychiatric disorders in the brain – through neurohormones, inflammation, and metabolic health. Dr. Rodrigo Mansur delves into that last one in our expert interview, and we end with a new app – Thinc-IT - that measures cognition in patients. It’s here.Published On:...

Around 50 controlled trials have tested benzodiazepines in depression, and the results are surprising. They seem to work. In this episode we look at the controversies surrounding this research and what it means for practice.Published On: 4/5/2021Duration: 25 minutes, 41 secondsTranscript:Benzos and sleep meds rarely earn a mention in textbooks...

Overdose deaths have been rising during COVID, but simply stopping the drug causes problems of its own. In this episde, Ashwin Patkar and Richard Weisler discuss how to reduce the risk of opioid deaths in psychiatric patients. Their Current Psychiatry article on the subject is here.Published On: 3/28/21Duration: 26 minutes, 50...

Swapnil Gupta, author of Deprescribing in Psychiatry, shares tips on how to help patients taper off benzodiazepines and psychostimulants. She adds a special therapeutic ingredient, but it’s not a medication. Then we digress into one of the oldest medications known to humankind: Opium. Published On: 3/21/2021 Duration: 21 minutes, 34...

DSM-5 has adopted many of the concepts from Hagop Akiskal’s Bipolar Spectrum, but not in the way he had planned. Here we trace his thinking back to the early 1970’s, when Dr. Akiskal reshaped the way we think about depression by blurring the boundary between stress-induced and biological depression.Published On: 3/15/2021Duration: 26...

What works best when the first antidepressant fails? And the second? Today, we bring you part 1 in our special series on treatment resistant depression.Published On: 3/7/21Duration: 16 minutes, 1 secondPublished On: 3/7/21Duration: 16 minutes, 1 secondTranscript:Kellie Newsome: What works best when the first antidepressant fails? And the second? Today, we bring you...