Researchers analyzed the blood of Hikikomori patients and found key biomarkers for the condition included higher ornithine and long-chain acylcarnitine levels and lower levels of bilirubin and arginine. Further analysis was able to distinguish between hikikomori and healthy volunteers and even predict with high accuracy the severity of the condition. The team hopes their findings can lead to better specialized treatments and support for hikikomori.

Children whose mothers experience rising levels of depression from prepregnancy until the months just after giving birth are at greater risk of developing emotional, social and academic problems, psychology researchers report. Their seven-year study, which tracked mothers and their offspring from preconception until the children were 5 years old, is the first to demonstrate how changes in mothers' level of depression over time may impact early childhood behavioral and emotional stability.

New research shows that the mental workload of intensive care unit nurses can successfully be evaluated using eye-movement tracking glasses.

A new study finds anticipating stress related to political elections can affect people's emotional well-being before anything has even happened. But a related study shows that education can help protect people against those stresses -- even for individuals who are actively engaged in the political process.

Children who spend more time playing adventurously have lower symptoms of anxiety and depression, and were happier over the first Covid-19 lockdown, according to new research.

Pharmacologic treatment in children and adolescents with psychiatric disorders reduces the risk of substance use later in life, especially in ADHD. Earlier-onset and longer-lasting treatment were most effective at reducing the later onset of substance use disorders.

Here's another good reason for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to eat their fruits and vegetables: It may help reduce inattention issues, a new study suggests.

Women instructed to embrace their romantic partner prior to undergoing a stressful experience had a lower biological stress response -- as indicated by levels of the stress hormone cortisol in saliva -- compared to women who did not embrace their partner. This effect was not seen for men.

Researchers have shown what happens to the brain when a person receives a depression treatment known as repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). rTMS is a depression treatment typically used when other approaches -- such as medications -- haven't been effective for a patient. By stimulating the dorsolateral pre-frontal cortex, rTMS activates several other regions of the brain involved in multiple functions, from managing emotional responses to memory and motor control.

Statins have been hailed as a wonder drug; the cholesterol-lowering drugs have been prescribed to tens of millions of people since their approval in the late 1980s to prevent heart attack and stroke. But the drugs may yet have additional benefits, some research has hinted, including on mental health. Now, a new study examines the influence of statins on emotional bias, a marker for risk of depression.