Considering the current changes in social conditions brought about by the psychiatry reform, effects of these transformations are also expected on the scientific producion in this field. The article aimed at analyzing studies published in journals between 2000 and 2005 discussing mental health and its dimensions. Nursing and Collective Health national and international journals, classified in Brazil as B or C, were reviewed. In the documental analysis of the material the following categories emerged: organizations and management of services, training of mental health professionals, psychosocial rehabilitation strategies and results, care of people with psychiatric suffering, and perceptions on mental illness. It noticed that the knowledge production in mental health is strongly influenced by practice.