As 2024 comes to a close, it is a good time to reflect on the progress made in mental health research over the past year. From groundbreaking studies to groundbreaking treatments, the dedication of mental health researchers and professionals has brought us closer to understanding and addressing the challenges so many people face.
In this year in review, we will celebrate some of the most impactful successes of MQ’s work and mental health research in 2024.
Finding what works in treating psychosis
Psychosis affects around 7.2% of people and it can be a very scary and disturbing disease.
With many new treatments appearing on the market, it is important to find out which treatments are effective for which people.
What treatments don’t work for everyone?
The GALENOS study is a major project at the University of Oxford, funded by Wellcome and supported by MQ, along with many other global partners.
In the first of many Living Systematic Reviews (LSR), GALENOS reviewed the existing evidence and data on a particular type of treatment called TAAR1 Agonists.. The LSR found that this type of treatment made little difference to the symptoms of psychosis.
A new treatment that works for some people
However, in a different study, US researchers brought a new treatment called Cobenfy (KarXT) to market, which is the first new drug for the treatment of schizophrenia in 50 years.
Initial tests found that Cobenfy reduced symptoms of psychosis over a five-week period in some of the people who took it. The drug has been authorized for use in the US and is under review in the UK.
But what treatments are effective for everyone?
More research is needed to find treatments that are effective for all people with psychosis.
MQ supports another Oxford University research project, also funded by Wellcome, called PUMA. This 30-month project will compare several different treatments for psychosis against each other to determine which is most effective. You can learn more here.
Understand the true value of effective mental health treatments
Developing new treatments can be expensive, but the life-transforming benefits to people can never be underestimated.
For this reason, earlier this year, MQ partnered with Pro Bono Economics to examine the economic value of two new treatments, to help demonstrate to those who control the national purse exactly what the true impact of making them widely available would be. .
The value of ADIE
ADIE (Alignment Dimensions of Introspective Experience) is a new treatment developed to help autistic people with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). The report estimated that making ADIE available to all autistic people with GAD in the UK could lead to at least temporary recovery for almost 6,000 people. The improvement in their quality of life during a year of recovery would be worth £125-£170 million, or between £21,000 and £28,000 per person.
The value of the LENS
LENS (Learning Effective New Strategies) is a form of treatment delivered remotely to aid recovery for those affected by GAD. The report found that if LENS were implemented for the 1.4 million people in need in the UK, the improvement in quality of life they could experience would be equivalent to £2.9 billion in economic benefits.
What impact does the Internet have on our mental health?
In October, MQ, in collaboration with the University of Melbourne, the Institute of Digital Psychiatry at Harvard University and researchers at the Oxford Internet Institute, published a ground-breaking report on the effects of the Internet on young people’s mental health.
The report found that while social media use itself cannot be attributed to the rise in mental illness among young people, that does not mean that technology companies are off the hook when it comes to their responsibilities to keep people healthy. the young ones.
The report found that extensive internet use is not in itself harmful to young people, but rather it is the experiences they have online that can affect people’s mental health and wellbeing.
Internet use can harm mental health by displacing healthy habits such as sleep, academic work, sports, and face-to-face interactions. This can negatively impact cognitive function, emotional regulation, academic performance, self-image, and social relationships. However, online activities can also replace unhelpful ones, such as rumination patterns, loneliness, negative emotions or behaviors.
The report also found that a window for technology companies to build in protections and make their platforms safe for young people is rapidly closing, as new technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing come to market.
The mission to expand research.
The UK Government is on a mission to make the UK the most attractive place in the world for life sciences innovation.
MQ supports this mission by facilitating patient and public involvement, engagement and participation, or PPIE.
The mental health mission
The Mental Health Research Center for Innovation (M-RIC) in Liverpool has launched its 2024 online annual review to showcase its achievements over the past year and provide an overview of the centre’s exciting plans for the coming year.
The review features a new animation providing a basic overview of M-RIC, interactive charts highlighting our key statistics and milestones from 2024, updates on its six research work packages, information on its latest engagement and engagement activities of patients and the public, and a summary of their plans for 2025.
Understanding how eating disorders develop
Eating disorders may be some of the most life-limiting mental illnesses, but little is known about how different eating disorders develop.
Avoidant and restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) primarily affects children and is not usually related to body image concerns.
In September, MQ researchers published their findings on the genetics that may influence food irritability. By better understanding how our genes can influence children’s relationship with food, it is hoped that we can better understand how ARFID develops.
New research on post-traumatic stress disorder
MQ was founded to better understand how mental health conditions begin, develop more effective treatments, and ultimately prevent mental illness altogether.
This year, our research is helping to make progress for people with PTSD.
Understand the risk
Post-traumatic stress disorder usually develops after a traumatic incident. It can be a one-time event, such as an act of violence or an accident, or an ongoing situation, such as an abusive relationship.
Understanding why some people develop PTSD and others don’t is an important step in preventing it from happening.
For example, MQ researchers found that some refugees seeking asylum in Australia developed symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder during the asylum application process, while others did not. The researcher found that refugees who were processed in detention centers abroad were 20 times more likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder than those who were not.
In a separate study, researchers at the University of East Anglia examined why some children who experienced a traumatic event developed PTSD while others did not. They determined that cognitive psychological factors (how children remember the event and perceive themselves afterwards) are the strongest predictors of poor mental health outcomes after trauma.
Improving treatments
One of the most disturbing symptoms of PTSD is intrusive memories of the trauma, often called flashbacks.
One of MQ’s founding trustees and current director of the MQ Foundation, Professor Emily Holmes, has developed a single-session treatment for frontline healthcare workers who developed post-traumatic stress disorder during the COVID-19 pandemic. Treatment includes playing the computer game Tetris and was found to reduce instances of flashbacks.
Prevent trauma in the first place
Through research, MQ is helping to present evidence of what works and what doesn’t to policymakers to help them introduce national guidelines to protect our mental health.
Earlier this year, MQ contributed to a report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Fit and Healthy Childhoods which called for a national strategy on trauma.
In particular, the report focused on methods to reduce adverse childhood experiences that can lead to the development of post-traumatic stress disorder and contribute to other mental health conditions such as depression and GAD.
What does 2025 hold for mental health research?
As we look ahead to 2025 and the start of a new chapter with our incoming CEO, we have many research milestones, initiatives and events to look forward to.
There is plenty of industry-leading research by MQ and our partners coming up in 2025. To name just a few:
Professor Valeria Mondelli, leader of the IDEA Flame project, will publish a paper in January in the Journal of Biological Psychiatry about her findings on the links between inflammation and depression in adolescents.
Click here to read some of the team’s early ideas.
MQ will also initiate our first EU Horizon-funded project, SYNAPSING, which explores the connections within the neurons in our brain and how they work.
He ATLAS of longitudinal data setswill be released in January. ATLAS is an innovative web-based search platform that maps thousands of longitudinal data sets from around the world.
ATLAS will improve discoverability and facilitate accessibility of longitudinal data in key scientific disciplines such as mental health.
We will also see the results of our Transdisciplinary Fellowships early next year.
In these projects, MQ supported mental health research in new scientific disciplines.
To learn about these exciting projects and be the first to hear about new research, keep an eye on our ideas page or subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest news.
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