The escalating global mental health burden has triggered an urgent real-world need for scalable artificial intelligence (AI) solutions. This study employs a quantitative bibliometric approach to objectively present the research hotspots and emerging trends in the global AI-driven mental health landscape (2016-2025), specifically capturing the post-2023 surge in generative AI.

We analyzed 9,623 original research articles from Web of Science and Scopus. CiteSpace and VOSviewer were utilized for co-authorship analysis, literature co-citation clustering, and keyword burst detection.

Research output grew exponentially, surpassing 3,000 publications in 2025. The US and China led productivity, with King's College London as the top institution. Research clusters encompass foundational AI methodologies and four clinical domains: diagnosis (e.g., neuroimaging), digital interventions (e.g., chatbots), targeted conditions (e.g., PTSD), and suicide prevention. Recent keyword bursts highlight diagnostic accuracy, loneliness, and occupational burnout as post-2023 frontiers.

The field is transitioning from exploratory algorithmic development to patient-centered clinical applications. While AI offers transformative potential for mental health research and care, future research must urgently prioritize patient safety, algorithmic bias, data privacy, safeguards against algorithmic hallucinations, and ethical integration into clinical workflows to ensure sustainable implementation.

Mental illness (MI) is a leading cause of global ill health and disability, with nearly half of the population affected by mental health (MH) conditions at some point in their lives. Consequently, all healthcare professionals, including physiotherapy students, will inevitably encounter patients with MI in clinical practice. However, their preparedness and ability to manage these patients remain unclear.

To explore physiotherapy students' perceptions of their preparedness and ability to manage patients with co-existing (undiagnosed or known) MH conditions alongside a primary physical health presentation in clinical practice.

A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive design was employed. Sixteen fourth-year physiotherapy students from the University of the Western Cape (mean age 22.8 ± 1.32 years) participated in semi-structured individual interviews conducted either face-to-face or online. Data were thematically analysed using Braun and Clarke's six-phase method.

Four themes emerged from the data: (1) Evolving understandings of MI: knowledge, sources, and lived experiences; (2) Negotiating care within personal and clinical realities; (3) Insufficient alignment between theory and practice; and (4) Making sense of physiotherapy's contribution to MH care.

The findings highlight the need to strengthen both theoretical and practical components of MH curricula and training within undergraduate physiotherapy programmes.

Improved curricular integration may enhance students' preparedness, ability, confidence and competence when managing patients with MI, while supporting more holistic and effective patient care.

Prior studies have linked the microbiota to brain diseases, whereas the longitudinal effects of the oral microbiota on cortical thinning and cognitive impairments in cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) remain unexplored.

We recruited 120 CSVD patients and 40 healthy controls (HCs). The subgingival plaque microbiota was sequenced by a metagenomic approach. Cortical thickness was assessed using GM-centile, an age- and sex-normalized MRI metric. Differential microbial taxa and KEGG orthologs (KOs) between groups were identified using MaAsLin2. Associations between key differential taxa with CSVD-specific cortical thinning were examined using the Spearman test, and those with MoCA score and plasma inflammatory markers (CRP and lymphocyte counts) were examined by linear regression models. Mediation models evaluated the indirect role of cortical thinning in the relationship between microbial abundance and cognitive function. Generalized estimation equations validated the longitudinal effects of the microbiota on cortical thinning progression.

We identified distinct oral microbiota dysbiosis in CSVD, including depletion of g_Selenomonas and g_Leptotrichia and enrichment of g_Treponema. The abundance of these microbes was correlated with longitudinal cortical thinning in the frontal gyrus, insular lobes, and inferotemporal gyrus. Enrichment analysis revealed that CSVD-enriched KOs were linked to the upregulation of LPS-mediated pro-inflammatory pathways, while those depleted were associated with the reduced biosynthesis of neuroprotective short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). g_Leptotrichia abundance showed negatively correlation with CRP (p = 0.045). Mediation analyses indicated that the association between g_Leptotrichia depletion and baseline cognitive impairment was mediated by bilateral insular cortical thinning (both p < 0.05). Additionally, the association between g_Leptotrichia depletion and one-year cognitive decline was mediated by superior frontal cortical thinning (p = 0.033).

Oral microbiota dysbiosis in CSVD patients reflects a pro-inflammatory state, characterized by enhanced LPS synthesis and reduced SCFAs production. This dysbiosis is associated with CSVD-specific cortical thinning in regions vulnerable to neuroinflammation, which in turn mediates cognitive impairment.

Infertility can cause significant distress to women, increasing the risk of anxiety and depression. This systematic review examined the influence of self-compassion interventions on mental health and well-being among women experiencing infertility. The review was conducted in accordance with Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology and reported following PRISMA guideline. Databases searched included Medline, Embase, Ovid nursing database, Emcare, PsycINFO and Cochrane Library from inception to November 2024. Quality assessment was conducted using JBI critical appraisal tools. Title and abstract screening was conducted by three reviewers, and data extraction was performed independently by two reviewers. Sixteen studies met the inclusion criteria, seven intervention studies (n = 591 participants) and nine cross-sectional studies (n = 3005 participants). Intervention studies reported a reduction in depression, anxiety, shame and feelings of defeat, alongside improvements in self-compassion, well-being, quality of life (QoL), self-efficacy, emotion regulation difficulties and coping strategies. Meta-analysis was not undertaken due to substantial clinical, methodological and outcome heterogeneity across included studies. Cross-sectional studies indicated that higher self-compassion was associated with lower fertility-related stress and better psychological outcomes. Overall, the findings suggest that self-compassion interventions, including education-based approaches, may improve psychological health and resilience in women experiencing infertility. Incorporating multi-faceted education-based strategies to enhance self-compassion may provide further support and resilience for this population.

Childhood traumatic experiences are known to have profound and lasting effects on mental health; however, there are limited data on the relationship between types of childhood trauma and social anxiety in non-clinical populations.

This study aimed to explore the associations between types of childhood trauma and social anxiety symptoms in non-clinical young adults.

The study was conducted at the Faculty of Health Sciences of a university in Istanbul, Turkey.

This cross-sectional study included 486 university students. Sample size was determined via G*Power analysis to ensure statistical power. Participants completed the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) to assess childhood trauma types and social anxiety symptoms. Data were analysed using stepwise multiple regression.

The mean age of the participants was 21.8 ± 4.0 years, and 81% were female, with emotional abuse and neglect scoring highest in both genders. The sample's LSAS total mean score was 63.87 ± 11.68. When the subscales were compared by gender, females had significantly higher mean fear and avoidance scores than males (p < 0.05). The results show that childhood abuse and neglect were significant predictors of social anxiety and explained 23% of the social anxiety variance.

Childhood abuse and neglect are clearly associated with social anxiety symptoms. Interventions and treatments for individuals with social anxiety should incorporate a detailed assessment of childhood trauma history, with a particular focus on emotional abuse and neglect.

This study contributes to the literature by clarifying the associations between specific types of childhood trauma and social anxiety symptoms in a non-clinical young adult population.

Acetylcholine receptor antibody-positive myasthenia gravis (AChR-MG) is a rare autoimmune disease in which AChR autoantibodies trigger complement activation and cause damage to the neuromuscular junction. This study evaluated the therapeutic potential of an anti-C2 antibody in the rat passive transfer model of myasthenia gravis (PTMG). Female Lewis rats (n = 36) were prophylactically treated with either an anti-rat C2 antibody or an IgG isotype control 2 h prior to subcutaneous injection of mAb35 (PTMG) or saline (non-MG). Serum samples were collected at several timepoints during the study and muscle weakness; body weight and clinical manifestations were assessed daily. The animals underwent electromyography prior to euthanasia. AChR content in the tibialis anterior was determined by radioimmunoassay. Anti-C2 antibody-treated animals maintained body weight, grip strength and muscle AChR content (both functional and total) at levels comparable to non-MG animals. Serum analyses confirmed reduced complement activity over the course of the experiment in anti-C2 treated animals. These findings indicate that anti-C2 treatment effectively prevents disease development in this model, supporting its potential as a therapeutic strategy for managing AChR-MG.

This case describes the presence of blepharospasm as a side effect after a short period of lithium treatment in a middle-aged woman with recurrent depressive disorder. Almost immediately after cessation of lithium carbonate, side effects subsided, indicating that the medication was the culprit for her symptoms. Switch to a different psychotropic as a mood-stabilising agent commenced. Four months later, side effects experienced remained absent and mental state appears to have improved, obtaining a remission of illness. There is a limited number of case reports which have reported blepharospasm as a side effect of lithium carbonate. Lithium is used worldwide for the management of mood disorders, although its use has declined over the years in certain parts of the world. In Australia, it is still considered the most effective mood stabilising agent and is recommended by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatry clinical practice guidelines for mood disorders.

This study evaluated the psychometric validity and clinical utility of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) in isolated, confined and unusual or extreme (ICUE) work environments in South Africa. Two occupational health surveillance cohorts (N = 730 and N = 128) representing diverse occupational fields completed the GHQ-12 together with validated measures of common mental disorders, psychological resilience, emotional wellbeing and mental toughness. Confirmatory factor analyses supported a bifactor model comprising a strong general factor with minimal unique variance attributable to the positive and negative item subfactors. Internal consistency was high across samples. The GHQ-12 total scores correlated positively with depression, anxiety and adjustment disorder symptoms, and negatively with psychological resilience, emotional wellbeing and mental toughness, supporting convergent validity. Test-retest reliability was moderately strong, with a minority showing marked deterioration of mental health under more stressful operational conditions, indicating the tool's potential sensitivity to environmental stressors. The GHQ-12 total scores differentiated between individuals with and without common mental disorders, and receiver operating characteristic analyses indicated acceptable sensitivity and specificity at optimal thresholds. Introducing a 'grey-zone' approach with lower and upper thresholds enhanced its practical application for surveillance and triage, by improving risk identification and decision-making for occupational health practitioners.

This study provides the first large-scale evaluation of the GHQ-12 in ICUE occupational environments in southern Africa. By combining psychometric evaluation with a clinically oriented grey-zone approach, it offers evidence to support how brief mental health tools can be applied to high-risk workplaces such as offshore vessels, submarines and polar research stations.

Electronic health record (EHR) based research using psychiatric real-world data is limited by a lack of measurement-based care. The mental status examination (MSE) offers a routinely documented, alternative data source for clinical phenotyping, potentially addressing this evidence gap.

This article aims to provide a comprehensive clinical and scientific justification for the use of MSE data as a source of real-world evidence, and to critically examine the assumptions underlying its use.

The content and structure of the MSE are first described and compared with those of structured psychometric rating instruments. Current literature applying natural language processing (NLP) methods, (including large language models (LLMs)), to extract psychopathological information from the EHR is briefly reviewed. Schizophrenia is then used as a case study for an in-depth critical examination of the assumptions and complexities inherent in mapping MSE findings to their corresponding psychopathological constructs. Principles for subject-matter-expert review of MSE data are proposed alongside a sample conceptual organization of MSE findings according to the main psychopathological domains of schizophrenia. Contributions made by MSE data at the research frontier are discussed, and the limitations of MSE data are considered.

Burnout, a state of mental and physical exhaustion from chronic work stress, affects approximately one in three doctors. Burnout is associated with substance use, suicidality and impaired doctor-patient relationships. It also contributes to reduced quality of care, increased medical errors and malpractice claims. Empathy is the cognitive ability to understand and respond to a patient's experiences. This study explored the relationship between burnout and empathy among South African intern doctors.

This cross-sectional quantitative study used consecutive sampling. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by 95 interns. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, as well as bivariate and multivariable analyses.

The median age of interns was 26 years. Over 70% were overextended or burnt out. About one-third (33.68%) of participants had a diagnosed mental illness, and over half reported worsening illness during their internship. Lack of awareness of counselling services (83.16%) was associated with higher burnout (p = 0.020). Age was associated with burnout profile (p < 0.001), with younger interns more likely to be burnt out. Empathy scores were significantly lower in the burnt out, overextended and ineffective interns (p = 0.002), even after adjustment for demographic, clinical and work-related factors.

The high prevalence of burnout among intern doctors and its inverse association with empathy underscore the need for systemic, evidence-based interventions to reduce burnout and enhance empathy, supporting the delivery of quality patient care.

This study offers novel insights into the challenges faced by South African intern doctors, providing a foundation for future research and targeted institutional reform.