Mental Health

Ketamine’s antidepressive effects require activation of opioid receptors in the brain, a new Stanford study shows. The surprising finding may alter how new antidepressants are developed and administered in order to mitigate the risk of opioid dependence.

Wearing a device that identifies other people’s facial expressions can help children with autism develop better social skills, a Stanford pilot study has demonstrated.

Investigators at Stanford and elsewhere have shown, for the first time in humans, that low blood levels of acetyl-L-carnitine track with the severity and duration of depression.

Deficits in the brain’s reward circuit are linked to social deficits in children with autism and may point the way toward better treatments, according to a new Stanford study.

Unplanned separation from parents is among the most damaging events a young child can experience, according to trauma research. A Stanford expert explains how it can hurt kids’ development.

The scholars said that their study contributes to the research documenting a causal link between fetal stress exposure and mental health later in life.

In a highly comprehensive meta-analysis of more than 500 clinical trials, researchers from around the world have drawn conclusions about the efficacy of 21 different antidepressants.

Three Stanford psychiatry researchers have been awarded $2.5 million to investigate patients with autism who also have enlarged brains, a condition known as megalencephaly.

Stanford clinicians helped develop the first clinical guidelines for treating pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome, a psychiatric problem linked to brain inflammation.

Brainstorm’s first event featured a competition between researchers who designed virtual-reality products for diagnosing and treating mental illness.

Children with mothers eligible for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program suffer from lower rates of anxiety and adjustment disorders than those with mothers who lack DACA eligibility.