ASCP Corner
Edited by Leslie Citrome, MD
A collection of brief peer-reviewed, evidence-based articles, authored by ASCP members, that examine the practice of psychopharmacology through the lens of clinical experience.
Check out the latest ASCP Corner articles from The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry below.
Generative AI for the Clinical Psychopharmacologist: Is It Ready for Prime Time?
Ritvij Satodiya, MD
J Clin Psychiatry 2026;87(4):26ac16486
Generative AI refers to subset of AI that can create new content (hence “generative”) such as text, images, or audio in response to user prompts. In less than two years, many clinicians have gone from curiosity to actual use. These systems can summarize papers, draft patient education materials, or organize notes, but they are not inherently reliable clinical authorities and do not guarantee factual accuracy. For psychopharmacologists, the attraction is obvious: the field sits at the intersection of rapidly evolving evidence, complex comorbidities, polypharmacy, and high documentation burden...
Catatonia as a Case Study in Psychiatric Decision-Making
Rachel L. MacLean, MD; Joseph B. Stoklosa, MD
J Clin Psychiatry 2026;87(3):26ac16389
Catatonia is a high-morbidity syndrome present in nearly 10% of psychiatric inpatients. In this article, we argue that increasing the rate of empiric treatment of suspected catatonia and preferentially erring on the side of administering catatonia-specific treatment when uncertain could lead to better outcomes...
Investigational Treatment of Depressive Disorders With Neuroactive Steroids: Potential Implications for Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
Mercedes J. Szpunar, MD, PhD,a,* and Marlene P. Freeman, MDa
J Clin Psychiatry 2021;82(4):20ac13853
The pathophysiology of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) has been the subject of investigation for years.1 PMDD is defined as an increase in 5 or more mood symptoms, such as mood lability, irritability, and anxiety, during the week before menses that resolve after the onset of menses and cause significant distress or impairment,2 and it affects up to 6% of women...
Therapeutic Potential of Psychedelics in the Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders, Part 1: Psychopharmacology and Neurobiological Effects
Avinash Hosanagar, MD; Joseph Cusimano, PharmD; and Rajiv Radhakrishnan, MBBS, MD
J Clin Psychiatry 2021;82(2):20ac13786
Psychedelics (Greek: “mind manifesting”), also referred to as hallucinogenic drugs, are a group of compounds that produce various (often profound) psychological effects characterized by altered states of perception, thoughts, feelings, and consciousness...
Evidence-Based Treatment of Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder: A Concise Review
Sara V. Carlini and Kristina M. Deligiannidis
J Clin Psychiatry 2020;81(2):19ac13071
Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a collection of physical, cognitive, and affective symptoms causing clinically significant distress or interference that occur in the 7 days prior to the onset of menses, after which they become minimal or absent...
Anti-Inflammatory Treatments for Major Depressive Disorder: What’s on the Horizon?
Manish Kumar Jha
J Clin Psychiatry 2019;80(6):18ac12630 DOI:10.4088/JCP.18ac12630
Inflammation is associated with greater depressive symptom severity, resistance to commonly used antidepressants, differential response to escitalopram versus nortriptyline or bupropion, and higher likelihood of hospitalization6 in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD)...
Medical Marijuana: What Physicians Need to Know
Rajiv Radhakrishnan, MDa,*; Mohini Ranganathan, MDa; and Deepak Cyril D’Souza, MDa
J Clin Psychiatry 2019;80(5):18ac12537
As of March 2019, in the United States, “medical marijuana” has been approved in 33 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Marijuana, however, remains a schedule I drug per the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) based on its findings that marijuana (a) has a high potential for abuse, (b) has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and (c) lacks accepted safety for use under medical supervision....