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Postpartum psychological distress is common and its detection is important in primary health care. Australia's residential early parenting centres admit mothers with their infants and treat both infant sleep and settling and maternal mental health. Many women have health problems but low uptake of professional assistance after discharge. Psychological distress may be conceptualised as either individual psychopathology or a normal reaction to caring for an unsettled infant, loss of identity and status, and limited emotional and practical assistance, but the potential benefits or harms of psychiatric labelling are uncertain. We examined the opinions of consumers of a residential early parenting centre. The method used was that, 12 months after discharge, a self-report survey was mailed. Results showed 50/94 (54%) women returned completed surveys. Participants identified perceived causes of postpartum psychological distress as: difficult infant temperament and behaviour (57%); fatigue (53%); and insufficient support (47%). Sixty-one per cent thought that diagnostic labels could improve access to health care, but 58% believed that it might cause others to question a woman's mothering ability or limit access to employment (83%). Psychiatric labels may improve access to health care in the postpartum, but effective treatments will address causes of distress as understood by women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lay Abstract: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and functional neurological disorders (FND) are relatively common conditions, and there has been recent interest in the overlap between them. Both conditions share core features of alexithymia, impaired interoception and deficits in attentional focus. To date, relatively little is known about the comorbidity rates between ASD and FND. This is the first meta-analysis and qualitative synthesis on the subject. We found that around 10% of children presenting with functional seizures have a comorbid ASD diagnosis. People with ASD are more likely than the neurotypical population to have functional somatic disorders, and there is also evidence that ASD rates are higher for other FNDs such as functional motor disorders. Since FND comes with risks of unnecessary medical procedures and investigations, it is important to recognize the potential for people with ASD to have an FND comorbidity., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.

Objective: People with attentional problems are at increased risk of eating disorders. This paper aimed to systematically review and synthesize the existing evidence on stimulant medication in the management of patients with bulimia nervosa (BN) or anorexia nervosa (AN) with or without comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)., Method: A systematic review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. A protocol for the review was registered with Open Science Framework (OSF) Registry and critical appraisal of the literature was conducted using Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Critical Appraisal Tools., Results: Thirteen articles met inclusion criteria including two quasi-experimental studies, one randomized controlled trial, four case series, and six case reports. 26 cases were included from studies and 32 from case series/reports. Only two cases from a single case report had a diagnosis of AN, while the remainder had BN. Stimulants included methylamphetamine, lisdexamfetamine, methylphenidate, dextroamphetamine sulphate and mixed amphetamine salt. In nearly all cases of BN there were reported reductions in eating disorder symptoms. The rates of adverse effects were high and included weight loss, decreased appetite, tachycardia, dry mouth, fatigue, insomnia, restlessness, nausea, bruxism, headache, palpitations, blood pressure changes, irritability, anxiety, depressed mood, and diaphoresis., Conclusion: There is currently insufficient evidence to support the use of stimulant medications to treat symptoms of BN or AN. The authors recommend considering screening patients with BN for ADHD., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no financial or personal relationships with people or organizations that have inappropriately influenced this work., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)