New online course: What is health research? Starts 11 November

Sign up to this free course, where, over the course of three weeks, you can learn about different types of research. Find out what questions to ask, what to expect when you volunteer and hear stories from people who've taken part and what they've gained from their experience.

Men's health research in Movember

Do something worthwhile to support this men's health campaign by taking part in research. Find studies on this site focussed on prostate cancer, testicular cancer and male health. You can also search for studies for mental health and specific health conditions and then filter accordingly.

World diabetes day

Combined drug therapy for at least 36 weeks reduces relapse after psychotic depression

Patients with psychotic depression who achieve remission benefit from continuing the antipsychotic drug olanzapine, alongside the antidepressant sertraline for at least a further four months, a North American trial has found. Patients who reduced and stopped olanzapine when their condition stabilised were more than twice as likely to relapse when compared with those who continued combined drug therapy. The majority of relapses occurred within two months of withdrawing olanzapine. This was a randomised control trial, with 126 participants. By 36 weeks from stabilisation, 13 people (20.3%) who were taking sertraline plus olanzapine and 34 people (54%) who were taking sertraline plus placebo experienced a relapse. These results suggest that continuation of combined drug therapy for these patients may help reduce the risks of potentially life-threatening relapse. The benefit needs to be balanced against the adverse effects of olanzapine, which include weight gain.

Losing weight following type 2 diabetes diagnosis boosts chance of remission

People who lose at least 10% of their body weight in the first year after being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes increase their chances of being in remission after five years, compared with those whose weight remains stable. Losing this achievable amount of weight over the next four years also makes remission more likely. In this study of 867 people, 257 (30%) achieved remission at five-year follow-up. The participants had been taking part in a trial but had not received intensive lifestyle interventions or been put on extremely calorie-restricted diets. This NIHR-funded study strengthens the evidence that healthy behaviour change and weight loss can result in remission of type 2 diabetes. This finding may help to motivate people to lose weight soon after a diabetes diagnosis ─ setting realistic and achievable targets can make a difference in the longer term.

Telephone-delivered CBT can provide lasting benefits for people with IBS

People with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) who receive cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) continue to have lower levels of symptoms over the following two years. Telephone-delivered CBT is particularly effective, with 71% of study participants experiencing a clinically significant improvement in their IBS symptoms. This NIHR-funded study is the 24-month follow-up to an earlier publication of 12-month outcomes for 558 people with IBS receiving usual care alone or additional telephone or web-based therapy. The former paper showed that both therapies helped people deal with their IBS. This longer-term follow-up shows that CBT continues to benefit patients months after therapy sessions have stopped, with the greater therapist contact time appearing to give the best results. IBS can be a very debilitating and difficult condition to treat. The present study helps strengthen the case for the provision of remote talking therapies, particularly telephone-based therapy, as a way to improve access and outcomes for patients.