anxiety disorders

Generalized anxiety disorder, peptic ulcers linked

A new finding of a link between an anxiety disorder and peptic ulcer disease lends support to the view that this gastrointestinal disease and anxiety disorder may share a common link. In recent years, attention has focused on a more biological element with the identification of bacteria as a cause of peptic ulcers. “The identification of Helicobacter pylori as an infectious cause of peptic ulcer disease has been considered by many to disprove the possibility that there is an important relationship between anxiety disorders and gastrointestinal disease,” says study author Renee D. Goodwin, Ph.D., from the Department of Epidemiology at the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University in New York City. “Over the last several years research on the causes and treatments for peptic ulcer disease has neglected the links with psychiatric/psychological factors,” she notes.

Obese Patients Seeking Weight-Loss Surgery Often Mentally Ill

Most patients seeking radical gastric bypass surgery suffer from some form of mental health problem and should first be evaluated by a mental health worker, according to a study completed by psychologists and surgeons at the Center for Weight Reduction at Montefiore Medical Center. “There is a high degree of psychopathology in this population, which could influence their ability to make informed consent and/or their reaction to the surgery and subsequent weight loss,” said the authors in an article published in the professional journal Obesity Surgery. The psychological aspect of obesity surgery is a little talked about topic, but is of increasing relevance today as the number of radical surgeries for obesity increases.