Do pregnancy and motherhood have an impact on cognitive functions in women.

Pregnancy and motherhood are some of the most physically and mentally challenging periods in a woman's life. The aim of current study was to examine aspects of cognitive functions in pregnancy and motherhood that are controversial in the literature. The study included 30 healthy pregnant women aged between 18-40 years in their second and third trimesters, 30 healthy controls (nulliparous and non-pregnant women) and 30 healthy mothers matched with the pregnant women for age, handedness and education level. Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, Trail Making, Stroop, Digit Span, Verbal Fluency and Rey Auditory and Verbal Learning Tests (RAVLT) were applied to all participants. The pregnant group showed significantly lower performance in trail making, digit span, verbal fluency as well as RAVLT compared to other two groups suggesting deficiencies in cognitive areas such as attention, set-shifting, planning, learning, language functions, semantic memory, working memory, encoding memory and retrieval. A trend toward increased function in response inhibition was observed in the mothers. Regression analyses revealed that pregnancy significantly decreased performance in verbal fluency, trail making, and RAVLT. Our findings from rigorously selected participants may help comprehend alterations in cognitive functioning during pregnancy and motherhood, as well as shed light on the contradictory literature.

P300 parameters in major depressive disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: Event-related potential measures have been extensively studied in mental disorders. Among them, P300 amplitude and latency reflect impaired cognitive abilities in major depressive disorder (MDD). The present systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to investigate whether patients with MDD differ from healthy controls (HCs) with respect to P300 amplitude and latency. METHODS: PubMed and Web of Science databases were searched from inception to 15 January 2023 for case-control studies comparing P300 amplitude and latency in patients with MDD and HCs. The primary outcome was the standard mean difference. A total of 13 articles on P300 amplitude and latency were included in the meta-analysis. RESULTS: Random effect models indicated that MDD patients had decreased P300 amplitude, but similar latency compared to healthy controls. According to regression analysis, the effect size increased with the severity of depression and decreased with the proportion of women in the MDD samples. Funnel plot asymmetry was not significant for publication bias. CONCLUSIONS: Decreased P300 amplitude may be a candidate diagnostic biomarker for MDD. However, prospective studies testing P300 amplitude as a monitoring biomarker for MDD are needed.

The effect of chronotypes on follow-up outcomes of patients with substance use disorder.

Substance use disorder (SUD) can have circadian characteristics and individuals with evening chronotype are more prone to addiction. In this study, the effect of chronotypes on the treatment outcomes of SUD was investigated. The study included 66 patients who were diagnosed with SUD according to DSM-5. Two clinical interviews were conducted at 6-month intervals, and remission/relapse status was evaluated at the second interview. The Structured Clinical Interview Form for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders (SCID-I), Addiction Profile Index Practitioner Form, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index and Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ) were applied to the patients. MEQ scores of relapsed patients were found to be different in terms of eveningness than those in remission (45.62 ± 8.70 versus 49.75 ± 7.60, p = 0.045). As the craving and addiction profile index total scores (addiction severity) increased, eveningness chronotype scores also increased (r = - 0.387 and r = - 0.286, respectively). The mean scores of craving and BDI were higher in relapsed patients compared to those in remission (p = 0.003 and p = 0.015, respectively). Our results suggest that patients with SUD had a lower morningness chronotype than the general population; additionally, more relapsed patients had an eveningness chronotype. Thus, chronotypes may play a role in the onset, prevention, and treatment outcome of SUD.

Hyperconnecitivity between dorsal attention and frontoparietal networks predicts treatment response in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) presented with repetitive obsessions and/or compulsions were associated with disrupted resting-state functional connectivity (rs-FC). To investigate the pharmacological treatment effect on rs-FC changes in OCD patients we conducted the seed-to-voxel FC analyses using dorsal attention network (DAN), default mode network (DMN), salience network (SN) and frontoparietal network (FPN) and basal ganglia seeds. Twenty-two healthy subjects and twenty-four unmedicated OCD patients underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Patients were rescanned after 12 weeks of escitalopram treatment. We found increased FC both within the DAN and between the DAN and the FPN which was ameliorated after medication and correlated significantly with the clinical improvement in obsession scores. We also observed an anticorrelation between the left caudate and the supplementary motor area in unmedicated OCD patients which also normalized with treatment. Results further showed treatment related normalization of orbitofrontal cortex hyperconnectivity with DMN and hypoconnectivity with DAN whereas aberrant FC between the SN and visual areas appears to be a medication effect. We suggest that DAN to FPN hyperconnectivity which is positively correlated with clinical improvement in obsession scores at pre-treatment stage in present study has a potential for being a neuroimaging marker to predict the treatment response in OCD.

REM parameters in drug-free major depressive disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Previous studies revealed that rapid eye movement (REM) parameters, such as REM latency (RL) and REM density (RD) could be used as electrophysiological markers of depression. Yet these finding should be re-tested in a comorbid-free and drug-free sample. The present systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to investigate whether drug-free and comorbid-free patients with unipolar depression differentiate from controls with respect to the RL and RD. The PubMed and Web of Science databases were screened from inception to 23 January 2023 for case-control studies comparing RL and RD of patients with unipolar depression and controls. The primary outcome was the standard mean difference. The data were fitted with a random-effects model. Meta-regressions were conducted to investigate patient characteristics and effect size. Publication bias assessment was checked by Egger's Regression and funnel plot asymmetry. Among 43 articles accepted as eligible, 46 RL and 22 RD measurements were included in the meta-analysis. The results indicated shortened RL and increased RD in the patient group than controls. Neither Egger's regression nor funnel plot asymmetry were significant for publication bias. In conclusion, our results tested within drug-free and comorbid-free samples are in line with the literature.

2D:4D Digit Ratios in Adults with Gender Dysphoria: A Comparison to Their Unaffected Same-Sex Heterosexual Siblings, Cisgender Heterosexual Men, and Cisgender Heterosexual Women.

We compared gender dysphoria (GD) patients and their same-sex siblings in terms of their 2D:4D ratios, which may reflect prenatal exposure to androgen, one of the possible etiological mechanisms underlying GD. Sixty-eight GD patients (46 Female-to-Male [FtM]; 22 Male-to-Female [MtF]), 68 siblings (46 sisters of FtMs; 22 brothers of MtFs), and 118 heterosexual controls (62 female; 56 male) were included in the study. FtMs were gynephilic and MtFs were androphilic. We found that 2D:4D ratios in the both right hand (p < .001) and the left hand (p = .003) were lower in male controls than in female controls. Regarding right hands, FtM GD patients had lower 2D:4D ratios than female controls (p < .001) but their ratios did not differ from those of their sisters or male controls. FtM GD patients had no significant difference in their left-hand 2D:4D ratios compared to their sisters or female and male controls. While there was no significant difference in right hands between FtM's sisters and male controls, left-hand 2D:4D ratios were significantly higher in FtM's sisters (p = .017). MtF GD patients had lower right-hand 2D:4D ratios than female controls (p <.001), but their right-hand ratios did not differ from those of their brothers and male controls. There was no significant difference in left-hand 2D:4D ratios between MtF GD patients, and their brothers, or female and male controls. FtM GD patients showed significantly masculinized right-hand 2D:4D ratios, while there was no evidence of feminization in MtF GD patients.

Levels of Depression and Anxiety, Sexual Functions, and Affective Temperaments in Women With Lifelong Vaginismus and Their Male Partners.

BACKGROUND: Depression and anxiety levels, sexual dysfunctions, and affective temperament characteristics of women with lifelong vaginismus (LLV) and their male partners may have important effects on the development, maintenance, and exacerbation of LLV. AIM: We aimed to investigate depression and anxiety levels, sexual dysfunctions, and affective temperament characteristics of both women with LLV and their male partners. METHODS: 56 women with LLV, their 56 male partners, and 44 couples with no complaints of any sexual function as a control group were included in this study. Dyadic data were analyzed using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. OUTCOMES: The Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Golombok Rust Inventory of Sexual Satisfaction, and Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego Auto Questionnaire Scale were completed by all participants. RESULTS: Women with LLV had higher levels of anxiety and depression and had more sexual dysfunctions except for avoidance than those of female controls. Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego Auto Questionnaire Scale scores were significantly higher in women with LLV for depressive (odds ratio [OR] = 1.27, 95% CI = 1.09-1.49), cyclothymic (OR = 1.31, 95% CI = 1.15-1.49), anxious (OR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.09-1.38), and irritable (OR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.04-1.42) temperament than in female controls. It was found that anxiety levels of male partners of women with LLV were higher than those of male controls and that they experienced less sexual satisfaction. Depressive (OR = 1.31, 95% CI = 1.07-1.61) and cyclothymic (OR = 1.18, 95% CI = 1.04-1.34) temperament scores were significantly higher in male partners of women with LLV than in male controls. The Actor-Partner Interdependence Model analyses show that hyperthymic temperament in male partners of women with LLV and anxious and depressive temperament in women with LLV have a negative effect on their own sexual functions. In terms of partner effect, it was found that men with hyperthymic temperament had a negative effect on the sexual functions of women with LLV and men with depressive temperament had a positive effect. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The individual characteristics of both the women and their male partners have an impact on LLV. STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: The sample size was relatively small to assess affective temperaments. The inclusion of male partners in the study contributed to our understanding of couples with LLV. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that affective temperaments detected in women with LLV (depressive, cyclothymic, anxious and irritable) and their male partners (depressive and cyclothymic) have an effect on the development, maintenance, and exacerbation of LLV, and affective temperaments have an effect on both their own and partner's sexual functions. Turan S, Usta Saglam NG, Bakay H, et al. Levels of Depression and Anxiety, Sexual Functions, and Affective Temperaments in Women With Lifelong Vaginismus and Their Male Partners. J Sex Med 2020;17:2434-2445.

2D:4D Finger Length Ratios in Individuals with Gender Dysphoria. / Cinsiyet Hosnutsuzlugu Olan Bireylerde 2D:4D Parmak Uzunlugu Oranlari.

OBJECTIVE: The neurobiological basis of Gender Dysphoria (GD) is not yet fully known. In recent years, the role of prenatal exposure to testosterone has been emphasized in the development of the GD. The aim of this study was to compare the 2D:4D digit ratio, which is considered to be a morphological indicator of exposure to testosterone in the prenatal period, in individuals with GD. METHOD: The study included 99 participants diagnosed with GD comprising 54 assigned the female gender at birth [AFB-GD], 45 assigned the male gender at birth [AMB-GD], and 58 female and 58 male participants making up the control group. The right and the left hands of the participants were photocopied and finger lengths were measured using digital calipers. RESULTS: The 2D:4D digit ratio on the right hand of the AFB-GD group was significantly lower (p=0.028) than that of the female controls, but it did not differ significantly as compared to male controls. The ratio on the left hand of the AFB-GD group did not significantly differ from that of the female controls, but it was higher than that of the male controls (p=0.045). The 2D:4D digit ratio on the right hand of the AMB-GD group did not differ significantly from that of the male controls, but they had a lower finger ratio as compared to the female controls (p<0.001). The ratio on the left hand of the AMB-GD group did not differ significantly from those of the male and female controls. CONCLUSION: The results of this study present suggestive evidence that the AFB-GD individuals were exposed to testosterone in the prenatal period.