Personality and Lockdown: A Study on Italian Undergraduates During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The current study aimed at increasing our understanding of the psychological impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on undergraduate students, particularly with respect to the association between personality traits; defense mechanisms (DMs); depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms (DASSs); and compliance with the government recommended health measures. A sample of 1,427 Italian undergraduate students were administered the Personality Inventory for the DSM-5-Brief Form; the Defense Style Questionnaire-40; and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21. Compliance with the COVID-19 behavioral recommendations was measured through a 10-item survey measure. Results showed that immature DMs and internalizing personality traits (i.e., detachment, negative affect, psychoticism) were risk factors of DASSs. Furthermore, subjects with higher levels of DASSs appeared less compliant with the health measures recommended by the Italian government. Experts may use these results to identify and subsequently support (via the Internet) young subjects at greater risk of mental health problems as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Psychic euosmia among obsessive-compulsive personality disorder patients: A case control study.

BACKGROUND: Psychic euosmia (PE) has been described as a supposed psychological predisposition for which pleasant smells elicit an immediate sense of pleasure, order and calmness in obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD). In this study we tried to verify the interpretation that PE is the counterpart of disgust that has been associated to contamination and moral purity. Disgust and morality are significantly associated in people with obsessive-compulsive personality traits. We expected that OCPD patients would experience higher levels of PE. AIM: To investigate the PE frequency in OCPD patients and healthy controls (HC) and to evaluate the relationship between PE and disgust. METHODS: A single-center, case-control study was conducted in an outpatient service for obsessive-compulsive and related disorders. The sample consisted of 129 subjects: 45 OCPD patients and 84 HC. In both groups we submitted the Disgust Scale Revised (DS-R) and the self-report Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 Screening Personality Questionnaire to which we added an additional yes or no question to investigate the presence of PE. In order to verify differences between groups, t-test was employed for continuous variables and 2 test for categorical variable; odds ratio was employed to analyze group differences in the PE survey. Correlation was explored with Pearson r correlations. RESULTS: No differences were observed between groups in gender composition or education. A slight significant difference was found in mean age (t = 1.988; P = 0.049). The present study revealed significantly higher proportions of PE among OCPD patients when compared to HC (OR: 5.3, 2.28-12.46). Patients with OCPD were more likely to report PE (n = 36; 80%) whereas a much lower proportion endorsed PE in the HC group (n = 36; 42.9%). Interestingly, no differences were observed between groups in mean score for the Disgust Scale. There was also no difference between the two groups in any of the Disgust Scale Revised subscales. Moreover, no significant correlations were observed in the OCPD group between PE and Disgust Scale Revised subscales. CONCLUSION: Results suggested that PE might be part of the clinical spectrum of OCPD, and it does not reflect the counterpart of disgust. This could also indicate that this phenomenon is a manifestation of orderliness or incompleteness. Further studies will need to be undertaken to better understand PE and its significance in OCPD.

The relationship between Vitamin D and depressive disorders.

Studies have suggested a relationship between low circulating levels of Vitamin D and depression. Vitamin D deficiency may be a consequence of depression-related factors, such as reduced sun exposure, decreased outdoor activity, and dietary changes, but it can also play a role in the pathophysiology of depressive conditions through a range of molecular mechanisms. In the present manuscript, findings related to prospective longitudinal studies on the relationship between Vitamin D levels and depressive symptoms and to randomized controlled trials on Vitamin D supplementation for depressive disorders are reviewed.

MELDNa score is associated with psychopathology and reduced quality of life in cirrhotic patients with a liver transplant perspective.

Psychopathological symptoms and reduced health related quality of life (HRQoL) are frequent in cirrhotics, but no data on their association with cirrhosis prognosis assessed by the MELDNa score are available. Prospective data on the long-term effect of deceased donor liver transplantation (LT) on psychopathological symptoms are needed. Before entering the LT waiting list, 44 consecutive LT cirrhotic candidates without a major psychiatric disorder underwent a psychopathological assessment, including Symptom Checklist-90-revised (SCL-90-R) and Defense Style Questionnaire (DSQ). HRQoL was measured by Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36). Abnormal performance at each questionnaire was defined by using 44 age, gender, BMI and education-matched healthy subjects. Separate binary logistic regression models were used to test the association of the Child-Pugh, MELD and MELDNa scores with abnormal performance at each questionnaire. Fourteen patients repeated the battery tests 3 years after LT. Before LT, increasing MELDNa was the only prognostic score independently associated with an abnormal SCL-90-R global psychopathological score index (OR: 1.207; 95% CI: 1.026-1.420; P = 0.02) and the best independent predictor of reduced HRQoL. After LT, compared to status prior to LT, performance at SF-36 general health perception scale ameliorated (P = 0.02), performance at SCL-90-R somatization scale (P = 0.001) and global psychopathological score index (P < 0.001) worsened and the negative correlation between the psychopathological global score index and HRQoL disappeared. The severity of cirrhosis in LT candidates should be monitored by the MELDNa score to better establish the right psychological counselling. Psychopathology, and in particular somatization, worsens after LT and should be carefully investigated.

Are mood and anxiety disorders and alexithymia associated with endometriosis? A preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this preliminary study was to determine whether psychiatric disorders, psychopathological symptoms, and alexithymia are associated with endometriosis in an Italian population. STUDY DESIGN: A preliminary study comprising 37 Italian patients with surgically confirmed endometriosis and 43 controls, without clinical and ultrasound signs of endometriosis, was carried out. Both patients and controls were evaluated for the presence/absence of psychiatric disorders, psychopathological symptoms, alexithymia, and pain symptoms (nonmenstrual pelvic pain, dysmenorrhea, and dyspareunia). RESULTS: Statistically significant differences were found between cases and controls for prevalence of mood and anxiety disorders, malfunctioning on obsessive-compulsive subscale (P < 0.01) and depression subscale (P < 0.05) of the Symptom Checklist-90-Revisited (SCL-90-R), and higher alexithymia levels (P < 0.01). Patients with endometriosis-associated pain showed greater prevalence of psychiatric disorders compared to pain-free patients but that difference was not significant. Significant correlation was found between malfunctioning in some SCL-90-R dimensions and pelvic pain, dysmenorrhea, and dyspareunia scores at the visual analog score (VAS). CONCLUSION: Some psychopathological aspects, such as psychoemotional distress and alexithymia, are more frequent in women with endometriosis and might amplify pain symptoms in these patients.

Lack of association between serotonin transporter 5-HTT gene polymorphism and endometriosis in an Italian patient population.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to determine whether the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTT), a key component in the control of the serotonergic system, is associated with endometriosis in an Italian population. FINDINGS: A case-control study, comprising 137 Italian patients with surgically confirmed endometriosis and 120 healthy controls, was carried out. 5-HTT genotypes (LL, SL and SS) were obtained by polymerase chain reaction and gel electrophoresis analysis. We found no overall difference in genotypic and allelic distributions of the 5-HTT gene between cases and controls. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that the 5-HTT L/S promoter polymorphism is not associated with susceptibility to endometriosis in the studied Italian patients.

[Characteristics of a population of medical students reported to the University Student Counseling Service "Fatti vivo!"]. / Caratteristiche di una popolazione di studenti iscritti alla Facoltà di Medicina e Chirurgia afferiti allo sportello counseling-accoglienza studenti "Fatti vivo!"

INTRODUCTION: During the last years, in Italy as well abroad, psychological counseling has been spreading through university environment, offering a range of opportunities, from individual settings to post-counseling group psychotherapies. Medical students, on the basis of data from several works within international literature, would represent a population particularly exposed to stressors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In our study we have recruited a sample of 44 medical students at Sapienza University of Rome. As evaluation tools we have used: a gathering card of socio-demographic variables, the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders Clinical Version (SCID-I CV) and a satisfaction card of the service. RESULTS; Fourteen students showed one or more diagnosis in Axis 1 of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR). Frequency analysis through χ2 test has underlined statistically significant differences relative to geographic origin variable. The service has been evaluated as alright. DISCUSSION: Although the data presented need deeper and more extensive verifications, our study supports the need of a service of psychological counseling devoted to university population and, even more, to medical students.