A major revision to the diagnostic "bible" -- which defines what is and what is not a mental illness -- has the final approval of the American Psychiatric Association (APA).
The approval means the final draft of the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-5, will be official when it is published in May 2013.
Ten years in the making, the rewritten manual has been embroiled in controversy. One outspoken critic is Allen J. Frances, MD, chair of the task force that developed the previous edition, DSM-IV.
In a critique published online by Psychology Today, Frances calls the DSM-5 "deeply flawed," with "changes that seem clearly unsafe and scientifically unsound."
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The 'Pacemaker' Implanted in the Brain to Prevent Alzheimer's Patients Losing their Memory
A 'pacemaker' has been implanted in to the brain of an Alzheimer's patient in a bid to reduce memory loss.
The device, which uses deep brain stimulation, has already been used in thousands of people with Parkinson's disease as possible means of boosting memory and reversing cognitive decline.
Now the first patient in the US has undergone the delicate surgery to try and halt the effects of dementia, which lowly robs its mostly elderly victims of a lifetime of memories and the ability to perform the simplest of daily tasks.
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Body dysmorophic disorder affects one in 100 people and can drive its sufferers to suicide. So why is it so hard to get treatment?
Samantha Davies was 13 when she began to develop the deformities that would transform her into what she described as 'the most ugly person in the world'. Her nose began to spread into a formless lump across her face, her cheeks inflated to three times their normal size and her head became square and masculine.
Read MoreUsing a Blood Test, Researchers ID Depression in Teens
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Ground-breaking Anti-depressant Eases Symptoms in Just Over an HOUR
An experimental drug has been found to lift depression in just over an hour in people who haven't responded to other treatments.
The findings open up the prospect of developing a new fast-working type of anti-depressant.
In a new study, a third of participants responded to the treatment within one hour and 20 minutes, seeing at least a 50 per cent reduction in their symptoms compared to a 15 per cent reduction in those who took a placebo.
This was significant as these patients had failed to improve in seven past antidepressant trials.
However, while their were minimal side-effects the dramatic improvements were short-lived with patients finding relief for an average of just half an hour.
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Half the Benefit of Sleeping Pills is Due to Powerful Placebo Effect
Half of the benefit of taking sleeping pills comes from the placebo effect, according to a major new study.
Researchers re-analysed results from more than a dozen clinical trials of the most common type of sleeping tablets, known as Z-drugs.
These drugs are frequently used in the UK and USA as a short-term treatment for insomnia with almost £25m worth of prescriptions handed out in Britain each year.
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