Effects of Detached Mindfulness on Patients with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

Objective: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of detached mindfulness (DM) in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Methods: Seventeen adult patients with OCD, who were receiving psychotropic medication, were included in the study. M.A., a qualified metacognitive therapist at the Metacognitive Therapy Institute in Manchester, conducted DM therapy. The Yale-Brown Obsession Compulsion Scale (Y-BOCS) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) were used to monitor clinical progress. Results: The mean Y-BOCS scores at baseline and the end of the study were 25.29 ± 5.70 and 13.53 ± 3.41, respectively, and a paired t-test analysis revealed a statistically significant difference between baseline and end-of-treatment scores (P<.001). The homework practices were also assessed in sessions 2, 3, and 4. The mean homework scores at the second, third, and fourth homework sessions were 8.70 ± 1.10, 8.00 ± 0.79 and 8.20 ± 1.1, respectively. The DM homework completion rate was at an acceptable level. Conclusion: In conclusion, our study has shown that the DM technique, one of the main techniques used in metacognitive therapy, is significantly beneficial in patients with a certain degree of severity. We are of the opinion that supportive studies with larger sample sizes are necessary for the demonstration of efficacy in patients with significant treatment resistance.

Pituitary volumes in patients with adjustment disorder.

The pituitary gland plays an important role in the stress response mechanism. Given the direct link between adjustment disorder and stress, we hypothesized that there might be changes in the pituitary gland in these patients. The study comprised a patient group of 19 individuals with adjustment disorder according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition, and 18 healthy controls. The mean pituitary gland volumes of the patient group were not statistically significantly different from those of the healthy control group (80.81 ± 1.82 mm3 in patients with adjustment disorder vs. 81.10 ± 7.04 mm3 in healthy controls, with a statistically nonsignificant difference of P > 0.05). This finding is contrary to our previous findings in anxiety-related disorders. In this regard, adjustment disorder is not similar to anxiety-related disorders in terms of pituitary gland volumes. We should also clearly state that our study is a pioneering study and that studies with large samples are needed to support our findings. The limitations of our study can be attributed to the small sample size, the utilization of a cross-sectional design, and the inclusion of patients using psychotropic drugs.

Second and fourth (2D:4D) digit ratio in heroin and cannabis addicted patients.

The etiology of addiction has not yet been fully elucidated. The ratio between the length of the second and fourth fingers (2D:4D ratio) has been linked with prenatal androgen concentrations, but also with addictive behvaiors. Aim: The present study aimed to evaluate the differences of 2D:4D ratio of individuals with cannabis and heroin addiction by examining them together with the control group. A total of sixty two male patients (33 opiate use disorder and 29 cannabis use disorder) with substance use disorder and the twenty-nine healthy controls were included in the present investigation. We obtained the lengths of 2D and 4D of the subjects by using sensitive calipers and calculated the 2D:4D. Heroin-addicted patients had lower 2D:4D ratio in in the right hand (significant difference between control group) (p < 0.001), there was no significant difference found between heroin-cannabis (p = 0.242) and control-cannabis 2D:4D ratios (p < 0.06). In the left hand, it was significant between the heroin-control groups (p < 0.037) and the cannabis-control groups (p < 0.023), while it was not significant between the heroin-cannabis groups (p = 1). In conclusion, we suggest that heroin-and cannabis addicted patients seem to have a lower ratio of 2D:4D compared to healthy control subjects. Our findings can be considered promising as to whether prenatal hormonal factors are important in the etiopathogenesis of addiction.

Cortical Thickness of the Orbitofrontal Cortex in Patients with Alcohol Use Disorder.

AIMS: In the present study, it was hypothesised that compared to healthy control subjects, significant differences in the cortical thickness of the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) region of the brain, which is relevant to both impulsivity and decision making, would be identified. METHODS: The subject groups included in the study were composed of 15 individuals who met the criteria for alcohol use disorder, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition (DSM 5) diagnostic criteria based on the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM 5 (SCID), and were admitted to the Firat University School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry or were hospitalised, and 17 healthy control comparisons were made. The volumes of and cortical thickness of the OFC were measured in the subjects. RESULTS: It was found that patients with alcohol use disorder had reduced volumes of the OFC bilaterally and a thinner cortical thickness of the same region bilaterally compared to those of the healthy control comparisons. CONCLUSIONS: Consequently, it is suggested that the OFC region of the brain appears to be statistically significantly smaller in patients with alcohol use disorder, both in terms of cortical thickness and volume, compared to healthy controls. Future research should focus on the status of these relationships longitudinally and should assess the causality of the association with the treatment response.

Pituitary Volumes Are Reduced in Patients With Alcohol Use Disorder.

AIMS: To determine whether there is a difference in pituitary gland volumes in patients with alcohol use disorder compared to healthy people. METHODS: The subjects included in the study consisted of 15 individuals who met the criteria for alcohol use disorder according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition (DSM 5) diagnostic criteria based on the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM 5 and were admitted to Firat University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, or were hospitalized, and 17 healthy controls. The volumes of pituitary were measured in subjects. RESULTS: Absolute pituitary gland volumes of patients with alcohol use disorder and healthy controls were compared in the analysis performed using the independent samples t-test. The mean volume of the patient group was significantly smaller than the healthy controls (58.02 ± 7.24 mm3 in patients with alcohol use disorder vs. 83.08 ± 12.11 mm3, P < 0.01), a difference which persisted after controlling for age, gender and total brain size. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with alcohol use disorder in this study had smaller pituitary gland volumes compared to those of healthy control subjects. However, this study has limitations including small sample size and not adjusting for previous or current medication use or current anxiety and depression.

Retinal Changes in Panic Disorder Patients.

AIM: Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a novel method that allows high resolution cross-sectional imaging of biological tissues. It was suggested that changes in the cranial structure or functions would be reflected in the retina. OCT has been an important method in the diagnosis and follow-up of diseases via morphometric or quantitative retinal measurements. Panic disorder (PD) is an anxiety disorder, where free radicals, inflammatory processes and neurotransmitter transmission disorders play a role in the etiology. The present study aimed to demonstrate neurodegeneration in PD by the comparison of PD patient and control OCT data. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The study group included 21 PD patients who met the study criteria. The control group included 21 healthy individuals without any known psychiatric or organic disease, including eye disease, and gender-matched to the patient group. All participants underwent detailed psychiatric and eye examinations. Central macular thickness (CMT), macular volume (MV), mean and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFL), ganglion cell layer thickness (GCLT), and central choroidal thickness (CCT) were measured in both eyes of all participants with OCT. A sociodemographic data form, Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGIS), and Panic Disorder Severity Scale (PDSS) were administered to the participants. RESULTS: In the study, it was determined that the CMT values of the PD patients were lower when compared to the controls in the OCT examination. There was a statistically significant difference between the CMT of the PD patient group and the control group; the CMT was lower in the patient group. There were no significant differences between the groups based on GCLT, RNFL superior, RNFL inferior, RNFL nasal, RNFL temporal, and CCT. There was no significant correlation between CGIS, PDSS scores and OCT measurements. CONCLUSION: This is the first study in the literature where patients with a PD diagnosis were analyzed based on the OCT method. OCT, which is a simple, noninvasive and relatively inexpensive method that the patient could easily adapt to during imaging, could be employed as a supplementary method in the diagnosis and follow-up of PD patients.

Superior Temporal Gyrus Volumes in Patients With Social Anxiety Disorder.

Objective: To determine if superior temporal gyrus volumes are altered in patients with a social anxiety disorder.Methods: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was utilized to determine the superior temporal gyrus volume in 21 patients with a social anxiety disorder and 20 control subjects without a social anxiety disorder. The superior temporal gyrus volumes were measured by manual tracing method. The study was conducted between September 2019 and April 2020.Results: The mean superior temporal gyrus volume for both sides was statistically significantly smaller than that of control subjects (left side: 11.38 ± 0.85 cm3 for patients and 12.73 ± 0.86 cm3 for controls, t=-5.064, P < .001; right side: 11.42 ± 0.84 mm3 for patients and 12.92 ± 0.85 cm3 for controls, t=-5.574, P < .001). Moreover, when comparing volumetric measurements for subregions, we detected that volumes of all subregions were also statistically significantly smaller than those of healthy comparisons (for both sides of the Heschl's gyrus and planum temporale).Conclusions: The study findings suggest that patients with social anxiety disorder seem to have smaller superior temporal gyrus volumes compared to healthy control subjects, although we do not know whether these results were in accordance with functional changes of the same region.

Smaller Pituitary Volumes in Patients with Delusional Disorder.

INTRODUCTION: Delusional disorder shares some clinical characteristics of OCD and hypochondriasis. Delusions compared to obsessions in the OCD and compared to bodily preoccupations in the hypochondriasis are more established beliefs. AIM: To measure pituitary volumes in patients with delusional disorder and hypothesized that volumes would be reduced in those patients by a mechanism that we could not account for before for patients with OCD and hypochondriasis. METHODS: Eighteen patients with delusional disorder and healthy controls were included into the study. Pituitary gland volumes were measured. RESULTS: When using independent t test, the mean total pituitary volume was 777.22±241.28 mm3 in healthy controls, while it was 532.11±125.65 mm3 in patients with delusional disorder. The differences in regard to pituitary gland volumes between patients with delusional disorder and healthy control subjects were statistically meaningful (p<0.01), as supported by ANCOVA, with the covariates of age, gender and total brain volumes as covariates. CONCLUSION: We determined that patients with delusional disorder had smaller pituitary volumes compared to those of healthy control subjects.

QT and P-wave dispersion during the manic phase of bipolar disorder.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Patients with bipolar disorder (BD) are at increased risk for cardiovascular diseases and complications. This increased risk is considered to be associated with the autonomic nervous system (ANS) abnormalities. However, there is little or no documentation of the relationship between this increased risk and the phases of BD. In this study, we aimed to compare the changes in the QT dispersion (QTd) and P-wave dispersion (Pd), which are predictors of sudden cardiac death and atrial fibrillation, between the patients with manic BD and healthy controls. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: The study included a patient group of 44 patients (26 female and 18 male) that were hospitalized due to a diagnosis of manic BD and met the inclusion criteria, and a control group of 34 age- and gender-matched healthy individuals (21 female and 13 male) with no history of psychiatric and neurological disorders. The QTd and Pd values were determined in each participant by performing the standard 12-lead body surface electrocardiography (ECG). RESULTS: The principal electrocardiographic indicators including corrected maximum QT interval, corrected QT dispersion, and minimum P-wave duration significantly increased in the patient group compared to the control group (t=2.815, p<0.01; t=4.935, p<0.001; t=3.337, p<0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: The results indicated that patients with manic BD are at increased risk for cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction. Therefore, clinicians should be more careful about ECG changes and related possible cardiac conduction problems such as cardiac arrthythmias in patients with manic BD. Further longitudinal studies are needed to investigate BD and its phases (depression, mania, and hypomania) with regard to ANS and cardiac abnormalities.

Hippocampus and amygdalar volumes in patients with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder.

OBJECTIVES: Moving from the point that there might be an association between the neuroanatomy of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, we decided to examine the volumes of hippocampus and amygdala of patients with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, which was previously evaluated in OCD patients by us. METHODS: Volumes of the hippocampus, and amygdala were measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder and healthy control subjects. Manual tracing was used. RESULTS: We detected that the mean left and right sides of hippocampus and amygdala volumes of the patients with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder were smaller than those of the healthy controls. CONCLUSION: Consequently, our present results suggest that hippocampal and amygdalar structural abnormalities may be related to the neuroanatomy of obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. However, it is required novel studies with larger sample.

Is there any role of latent toxoplasmosis in schizophrenia disease?

BACKGROUND: A large number of studies have hypothesized that Toxoplasma gondii is a potentially relevant etiological factor in some cases of schizophrenia. By contrast, some studies have disproved this association. The aim of this study was to investigate whether latent toxoplasmosis has any role in schizophrenia disease. Additionally, the association between T. gondii and subtypes of schizophrenia, and the impacts of toxoplasmosis on psychopathology were examined in the study. METHODS: A total of 85 patients with schizophrenia and 60 healthy volunteers were included in this prospective study. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody to T. gondii was examined by enzyme-linked immune-sorbent assay method. RESULTS: Seropositivity rates were 43.5% for the patients with schizophrenia and 43.3% for the healthy controls (odds ratio: 1.008, 95% confidence interval: 0.517-1.964, p = 0.981).There was no significant difference in T. gondii IgG positivity between the schizophrenia and control groups with respect to sex and age. The difference in seroprevalence of T. gondii IgG antibodies among the schizophrenia subtypes was not statistically significant (p = 0.934). No significant difference was found in Positive and Negative Syndrome Subscales between Toxoplasma-infected and Toxoplasma-free patients. CONCLUSION: In the study area with a high prevalence of T. gondii, no association between toxoplasmosis and schizophrenia was detected. These findings showed that toxoplasmosis has no role in the risk of schizophrenia disease.