Laurie Rashidi Casaus

Laurie Rashidi Casaus serves as a Health Sciences Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences within the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Her primary academic appointment focuses on clinical psychiatry research with particular emphasis on schizophrenia spectrum disorders and treatment interventions.

Dr. Casaus's research interests center on schizophrenia treatment, particularly examining cognitive remediation approaches, antipsychotic medication efficacy (with special focus on risperidone formulations), white matter myelination abnormalities in psychosis, and the relationship between physical exercise and mental health outcomes in first-episode psychosis. Her work frequently investigates how cognitive training, medication adherence, and physical activity interventions can improve functional outcomes for individuals experiencing early stages of schizophrenia.

Analysis of her publication record reveals a strong focus on randomized controlled trials examining novel treatment approaches for first-episode schizophrenia, with particular attention to how cognitive remediation combines with pharmacological treatments to improve both cognitive and functional outcomes. Her research spans clinical psychiatry, neuroscience, and psychopharmacology, with recent work increasingly incorporating exercise interventions as adjunctive treatments.

Dr. Casaus maintains active research collaborations within UCLA's psychiatry department, particularly with researchers including Keith Nuechterlein, Kenneth Subotnik, and Benjamin Ellingson. Her work has been cited in numerous policy documents and clinical guidelines, with several publications receiving significant attention in both academic and clinical communities.