Medical students, residents present posters at state psychiatry conference

Second-year psychiatry resident Amy Hudson, M.D., tied for third place in the poster competition.

A group of third-year medical students and psychiatry residents recently presented research posters at the Alabama Psychiatric Physicians Association (APPA) 2023 Spring Conference in Destin, Florida. 

First-year psychiatry resident Tyeler Rayburn, M.D., who serves on the APPA Resident Fellow Section Committee, presented the poster “Managing Psychiatric Symptoms in Patients with Autoimmune Limbic Encephalitis.” 

“Although these patients are rare, it’s important for psychiatrists and child neurologists at a tertiary referral center such as ours to be aware of them,” Rayburn said of his presentation. “This illness perfectly illustrates the intersection of psychiatry and neurology in diagnosis and management. We reviewed and reported best practices and new findings in treatment, especially in regard to psychiatric symptoms in a pediatric hospital setting.” 

Amy Hudson, M.D., a second-year psychiatry resident, tied for third place in the poster competition for her presentation “ASD Diagnosis in a Previously Undiagnosed Adult.”  

Third-year medical student Taran Carrasco

presented a poster at the conference.

Taran Carrasco, a third-year medical student at the Whiddon College of Medicine, presented the poster “Methamphetamine-Induced Catatonia: Considerations in the ED Setting.” Catatonia is a disorder that disrupts a person’s awareness of the world around them. 

“I think what was most important about my case presentation was that patients who present with catatonia are usually seen first by emergency medicine providers,” Carrasco said. “It is important that emergency medicine physicians consider a wide range of etiologies of catatonia because it can be caused by psychiatric disorders, medications, metabolic disorders and illicit substances, just to name a few. Methamphetamines are not typically thought to induce catatonic features, but that is what made our case so interesting.” 

Additional authors of the poster were third-year medical student Jonathan Lee and first-year psychiatry resident Evan Chavers, M.D. 

Carrasco said she attended a variety of sessions at the conference covering topics such as the science of happiness, updates in psychological testing, what makes a good referral, and commitment laws in Alabama. “While I do not currently plan to pursue psychiatry, I am passionate about mental health, and I believe it is beneficial for all providers to have some basic knowledge of psychiatry and the processes in place to help patients obtain the help they need,” she said. 

Below is a list of the poster presentations from Whiddon College of Medicine medical students, residents and faculty: 

“Locked Units and Lockup: Delusional Disorder and the Justice System” 
Presenting author: Kiley Brady, M3  
Additional author: Evan Chavers, M.D., PGY-1

“Methamphetamine-Induced Catatonia: Considerations in the ED Setting” 
Presenting author: Taran Carrasco, M3  
Additional authors: Jonathan Lee, M3; Evan Chavers, M.D., PGY-1

“Depakote Augmentation in the Treatment of Catatonia” 
Presenting author: Amanda Davis, M.D., PGY-1
Additional authors: Shane Stephenson, M3; Miranda Crowell, M.D., PGY-1; Praveen Narahari, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry  

“Delusional Ideation Resulting from Long-Term PTSD: A Case Study” 
Presenting author: Sela Gavan, M3  
Additional author: Maridith Hollis, M.D.  

“ASD Diagnosis in a Previously Undiagnosed Adult” 
Presenting author: Amy Hudson, M.D., PGY-2
Additional authors: Samantha Lee, M.D., PGY-2; Edgar W. Finn, M.D, assistant professor of psychiatry; Adryanna Tucker, M3, Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine - Auburn

“Treating Concurrent Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder” 
Presenting author: Mia Jetsu, M3  
Additional authors: Lauren Mussell, M3; Tyeler Rayburn, M.D., PGY-1; Robert Detrinis, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry  

“Examination of Quetiapine in the Role of Delirium” 
Presenting author: Cara King, M3  
Additional authors: Jeanetta Malone, M.D., PGY-2; Maridith Hollis, M.D., assistant professor of psychiatry  

“Mutism as the Presenting Symptom of Psychosis and Identifying First-Episode Psychosis” 
Presenting author: Jeanetta Malone, M.D., PGY-2
Additional author: William Burns, M.D., PGY-2

“Managing Behavioral Symptoms in Autoimmune Limbic Encephalitis” 
Presenting author: Lauren Mussell, M3  
Additional authors: Mia Jetsu, M3; Tyeler Rayburn, M.D., PGY-1; Sandra Parker, M.D., professor and chair of psychiatry  

“Managing Psychiatric Symptoms in a Patient with Autoimmune Limbic Encephalitis” 
Presenting author: Tyeler Rayburn, M.D., PGY-1
Additional author: Sandra Parker, M.D., professor and chair of psychiatry  

View the abstracts of the poster presentations.