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Negative attitudes towards people with mental health disorders have been widely studied and identified in the general population, and even within health care professionals. Moreover, studies focused on service users have also identified mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, as a source of stigma. However, in Mexico and Latin America few studies have been conducted addressing this issue. To explore mental health service users' perceptions of stigma by members of the general population and by psychiatrists in Mexico, service users at a psychiatric hospital in Mexico were invited to participate in either focus groups or individual interviews, which were audio recorded, transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. A total of 47 service users participated in this study. The results suggested that participants were not only aware of the possible consequences of mental health related stigma, but they have also experienced stigmatisation for having a mental illness. Participants also considered psychiatrists can hold negative attitudes towards people with mental illness, something that can represent a barrier for them to have optimal quality of care. Therefore, participants agreed that these attitudes should be addressed to improve the care they received from these professionals. This study suggests that, like members of the general population, psychiatrists are also considered as a source of stigma by people with mental illness in Mexico. These findings not only add to previous work conducted in Mexico and other countries, they also confirm the importance of addressing negative attitudes in this group of health professionals.

BACKGROUND: Cocaine use disorder (CUD) is a global condition lacking effective treatment. Repeated magnetic transcranial stimulation (rTMS) may reduce craving and frequency of cocaine use, but little is known about its efficacy and neural effects. METHODS: Using a double-blind placebo-controlled randomized clinical trial (RCT) [NCT02986438], we sought to elucidate short- and long-term clinical benefits of 5-Hz rTMS as an add-on to standard treatment in CUD patients and discern underlying functional connectivity effects using magnetic resonance imaging. Forty-four randomly assigned CUD patients completed the 2-week double-blind acute phase [Sham (n=20, 2f/18m) and Active (n=24, 4f/20m)], in which they received 2 daily sessions of rTMS (5,000 pulses) on the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Subsequently, n=20 CUD patients continued to open-label maintenance (2 weekly sessions for up to 6 months). Measures were acquired at baseline, 2 weeks, 3 months and 6 months. RESULTS: Overall, 5-Hz rTMS plus standard treatment for 2 weeks significantly reduced craving and impulsivity in the Active group; decreased impulsivity correlated with improvements in functional connectivity in executive control and default mode networks. Clinical and functional connectivity effects were maintained for 3 months but they dissipated by 6 months. We did not observe reduction of positive cocaine urine tests, however, self-reported frequency and grams consumed for 6 months were reduced. CONCLUSIONS: With this RCT we show that 5-Hz rTMS has potential promise as an adjunctive treatment for CUD and merits further research.

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