Management of long-term depression is a significant problem in primary care populations with considerable on-going morbidity, but few studies have focused on this group.

To evaluate whether structured, nurse-led proactive care of patients with chronic depression in primary care improves outcomes.

Participants with chronic/recurrent major depression or dysthymia were recruited from 42 UK general practices and randomised to general practitioner (GP) treatment as usual or nurse intervention over 2 years (the ProCEED trial, trial registration: ISRCTN36610074).

In total 282 people received the intervention and there were 276 controls. At 24 months there was no significant improvement in Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) score or quality of life (Euroquol-EQ-VAS), but a significant improvement in functional impairment (Work and Social Activity Schedule, WSAS) of 2.5 (95% CI 0.6–4.3, P = 0.010) in the intervention group. The impact per practice-nurse intervention session was –0.37 (95% CI –0.68 to –0.07, P = 0.017) on the BDI-II score and –0.33 (95% CI –0.55 to –0.10, P = 0.004) on the WSAS score, indicating that attending all 10 intervention sessions could lead to a BDI-II score reduction of 3.7 points compared with controls.

The intervention improved functioning in these patients, the majority of whom had complex long-term difficulties, but only had a significant impact on depressive symptoms in those engaging with the full intervention.

In Switzerland assisted suicide is legal if no self-interest is involved.

To compare the strength and direction of associations with sociodemographic factors between assisted and unassisted suicides.

We calculated rates and used Cox and logistic regression models in a longitudinal study of the Swiss population.

Analyses were based on 5 004 403 people, 1301 assisted and 5708 unassisted suicides from 2003 to 2008. The rate of unassisted suicides was higher in men than in women, rates of assisted suicides were similar in men and women. Higher education was positively associated with assisted suicide, but negatively with unassisted. Living alone, having no children and no religious affiliation were associated with higher rates of both.

Some situations that indicate greater vulnerability such as living alone were associated with both assisted and unassisted suicide. Among the terminally ill, women were more likely to choose assisted suicide, whereas men died more often by unassisted suicide.

Few randomised clinical trials have examined the efficacy of an intervention aimed at improving psychosocial functioning in bipolar disorder.

To examine changes in psychosocial functioning in a group that has been enrolled in a functional remediation programme 1 year after baseline.

This was a multicentre, randomised, rater-masked clinical trial comparing three patient groups: functional remediation, psychoeducation and treatment as usual over 1-year follow-up. The primary outcome was change in psychosocial functioning measured by means of the Functioning Assessment Short Test (FAST). Group×time effects for overall psychosocial functioning were examined using repeated-measures ANOVA (trial registration NCT01370668).

There was a significant group×time interaction for overall psychosocial functioning, favouring patients in the functional remediation group (F = 3.071, d.f. = 2, P = 0.049).

Improvement in psychosocial functioning is maintained after 1-year follow-up in patients with bipolar disorder receiving functional remediation.

Although substance misuse is a key risk factor in suicide, relatively little is known about the relationship between lifetime misuse and misuse at the time of suicide.

To examine the relationship between substance misuse and subsequent suicide.

Linkage of coroners' reports to primary care records for 403 suicides occurring over 2 years.

With alcohol misuse, 67% of the cohort had previously sought help for alcohol problems and 39% were intoxicated at the time of suicide. Regarding misuse of other substances, 54% of the cohort was tested. Almost one in four (38%) tested positive, defined as an excess of drugs over the prescribed therapeutic dosage and/or detection of illicit substances. Those tested were more likely to be young and have a history of drug misuse.

A deeper understanding of the relationship between substance misuse and suicide could contribute to prevention initiatives. Furthermore, standardised toxicology screening processes would avoid diminishing the importance of psychosocial factors involved in suicide as a ‘cause of death’.

Reducing the global treatment gap for mental disorders requires treatments that are economical, effective and culturally appropriate.

To describe a systematic approach to the development of a brief psychological treatment for patients with severe depression delivered by lay counsellors in primary healthcare.

The treatment was developed in three stages using a variety of methods: (a) identifying potential strategies; (b) developing a theoretical framework; and (c) evaluating the acceptability, feasibility and effectiveness of the psychological treatment.

The Healthy Activity Program (HAP) is delivered over 6–8 sessions and consists of behavioral activation as the core psychological framework with added emphasis on strategies such as problem-solving and activation of social networks. Key elements to improve acceptability and feasibility are also included. In an intention-to-treat analysis of a pilot randomised controlled trial (55 participants), the prevalence of depression (Beck Depression Inventory II ⩾19) after 2 months was lower in the HAP than the control arm (adjusted risk ratio = 0.55, 95% CI 0.32–0.94, P = 0.01).

Our systematic approach to the development of psychological treatments could be extended to other mental disorders. HAP is an acceptable and effective brief psychological treatment for severe depression delivered by lay counsellors in primary care.

Informed consent in research is partly achieved through the use of information sheets. There is a perception however that these information sheets are long and complex. The recommended reading level for patient information is grade 6, or 11–12 years old.

To investigate whether the readability of participant information sheets has changed over time, whether particular study characteristics are related to poorer readability and whether readability and other study characteristics are related to successful study recruitment.

We obtained 522 information sheets from the UK National Institute for Health Research Clinical Research Network: Mental Health portfolio database and study principal investigators. Readability was assessed with the Flesch reading index and the Grade level test.

Information sheets increased in length over the study period. The mean grade level across all information sheets was 9.8, or 15–16 years old. A high level of patient involvement was associated with more recruitment success and studies involving pharmaceutical or device interventions were the least successful. The complexity of information sheets had little bearing on successful recruitment.

Information sheets are far more complex than the recommended reading level of grade 6 for patient information. The disparity may be exacerbated by an increasing focus on legal content. Researchers would benefit from clear guidance from ethics committees on writing succinctly and accessibly and how to balance the competing legal issues with the ability of participants to understand what a study entails.

Imaging biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease include medial temporal lobe atrophy (MTLA) depicted on computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and patterns of reduced metabolism on fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET).

To investigate whether MTLA on head CT predicts the diagnostic usefulness of an additional FDG-PET scan.

Participants had a clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (n = 37) or dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB; n = 30) or were similarly aged controls (n = 30). We visually rated MTLA on coronally reconstructed CT scans and, separately and blind to CT ratings, abnormal appearances on FDG-PET scans.

Using a pre-defined cut-off of MTLA ⩾5 on the Scheltens (0–8) scale, 0/30 controls, 6/30 DLB and 23/30 Alzheimer's disease had marked MTLA. FDG-PET performed well for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease v. DLB in the low-MTLA group (sensitivity/specificity of 71%/79%), but in the high-MTLA group diagnostic performance of FDG-PET was not better than chance.

In the presence of a high degree of MTLA, the most likely diagnosis is Alzheimer's disease, and an FDG-PET scan will probably not provide significant diagnostic information. However, in cases without MTLA, if the diagnosis is unclear, an FDG-PET scan may provide additional clinically useful diagnostic information.

Exploring cultural differences may improve understanding about the social processes underlying the stigmatisation of people with mental illness.

To compare public beliefs and attitudes about schizophrenia in Central Europe and North Africa.

Representative national population surveys conducted in Germany (2011) and in Tunisia (2012), using the same interview mode (face to face) and the same fully structured interview.

In Tunisia, respondents showed a stronger tendency to hold the person with schizophrenia responsible for the condition. At the same time they expressed more prosocial reactions and less fear than their German counterparts. In Germany, the desire for social distance was greater for more distant relationships, whereas in Tunisia this was the case for close, family-related relationships.

Stigma differs between Tunisia and Germany more in form than in magnitude. It manifests particularly in those social roles which ‘matter most’ to people within a given culture.