Development and psychometric properties of an informant assessment scale of theory of mind for adults with traumatic brain injury.

Impairment of theory of mind (ToM) is a common phenomenon following traumatic brain injury (TBI) that has clear effects on patients' social functioning. A growing body of research has focused on this area, and several methods have been developed to assess ToM deficiency. Although an informant assessment scale would be useful for examining individuals with TBI, very few studies have adopted this approach. The purpose of the present study was to develop an informant assessment scale of ToM for adults with traumatic brain injury (IASToM-aTBI) and to test its reliability and validity with 196 adults with TBI and 80 normal adults. A 44-item scale was developed following a literature review, interviews with patient informants, consultations with experts, item analysis, and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). The following three common factors were extracted: social interaction, understanding of beliefs, and understanding of emotions. The psychometric analyses indicate that the scale has good internal consistency reliability, split-half reliability, test-retest reliability, inter-rater reliability, structural validity, discriminate validity and criterion validity. These results provide preliminary evidence that supports the reliability and validity of the IASToM-aTBI as a ToM assessment tool for adults with TBI.

[Effects of citalopram on the expression of PCNA and C-fos and cell apoptosis in rat frontal cortical neurons after stress].

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of citalopram on the expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and proto-oncogene protein (C-fos) and cell apoptosis in frontal cortical neurons of rat after stress. METHODS: Twenty four healthy male SD rats were randomly divided into three groups (n = 8): control group, stress group (treated with saline, ig) , experimental group (treated with Citalopram 4 mg/kg x d for 28 days, ig). Rats were forced to swim to establish chronic stress model. The protein expression levels of PCNA and C-fos were tested by immunohistochemistry assay. TUNEL assay was used to test cell apoptosis. Nikon image analysis software was used to determine the number of positive cells in each index. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, the stress group showed a smaller amount of PCNA-positive cells, a larger number of C-fos positive cells, and the volume of positive cells was significantly reduced. Compared with the stress group, the PCNA positive cells were increased significantly, the C-fos positive cells and TUNEL positive cells were decreased significantly, nuclear condensation phenomenon in frontal cortical neurons and the staining was significantly lighter in experimental group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Citalopram significantly antagonize PCNA, C-fos protein expression and cell apoptosis of rat prefrontal cortical neurons caused by chronic stress, which might be the one of mechanisms of citalopram for prevention and treatment of psychosis caused by chronic stress.

[Disability identification for cases with clinical diagnosis of diffuse axonal injury due to traffic accidents: a study of 89 cases].

OBJECTIVE: To study the disability identification for cases with clinical diagnosis of diffuse axonal injury (DAI) due to traffic accidents, and to explore the possible effects of DAI on identification results. METHODS: Five hundred and fifty-six cases of cerebral injury due to traffic accidents were collected, including 467 cases diagnosed with cerebral contusion or laceration and 89 cases diagnosed with DAI. The identification results of different groups with diagnosis of DAI diagnosis, diagnosis of DAI with cerebral contusion (laceration), and diagnosis of cerebral contusion or laceration without DAI were compared and statistically analyzed, based on the results of CT and MRI re-review. RESULTS: The disability identification levels in DAI group (20 cases), DAI group (69 cases) with cerebral contusion (laceration) and DAI group (467 cases) not complicated by cerebral contusion (laceration) were 7.72 +/- 1.09, 7.78 +/- 1.11, and 8.86 +/- 0.66, respectively. The disability levels of the two groups diagnosed with DAI were higher than those of the group without DAI diagnosis (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Patients with DAI diagnosis might have more severe cerebral injury. In the identification process, one should pay attention to the possible missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis, and meanwhile avoid relying on those evidences provided only by CT and MRI.

The dopamine D(2) partial agonist and antagonist terguride decreases heroin self-administration on fixed- and progressive-ratio schedules.

Dopamine partial agonists have been suggested to be potential therapeutic candidates for pharmacological intervention in drug addiction. These drugs bind to dopamine receptors with high affinity and low intrinsic activity and are hypothesized to behave as functional antagonists in conditions of high dopaminergic tone. The aim of the present study was to characterize the effects of terguride, a partial dopamine agonist at the dopamine D(2) receptor, on intravenous heroin self-administration on fixed- and progressive-ratio schedules of reinforcement. The effects of terguride on oral sweet solution (4% sucrose) self-administration on a fixed-ratio schedule were also tested. Terguride dose-dependently decreased heroin self-administration on the fixed-ratio schedule and decreased the maximum number of responses for heroin self-administration on a progressive-ratio schedule. In contrast, terguride did not significantly affect oral sucrose self-administration. These data suggest that terguride may represent a novel pharmacological strategy for the treatment of opiate addiction.

[Related analysis of mental disability and retardation due to traffic brain injury].

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the relevant factors of determining the degree of mental disability after brain injuries in the traffic accidents. METHODS: A total of 157 forensic psychiatry cases involving the assessment of mental disability caused by traffic accidents were collected and divided into three groups (mild, moderate and severe) according to the conclusion of the forensic identification. The demographic, clinical and forensic data were compared in the three groups and analyzed with ordinal logistic regression. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference in the demographic data among three groups (P > 0.05). While there was statistically significant difference in the coma duration, severity of intracranial hemorrhage, working capacity, family duties, social functions, self care capacity and intelligence quotient (P < 0.05) among the groups. Intracranial hemorrhage, family duties, social functions and self care capacity were chosen as the factors in the logistic regression equation. CONCLUSION: The degree of the brain damage influenced the mental disability. Family duties, social functions and self care capacity are the major factors for determining the degree of mental disability after injured.

Polymorphisms of androgen receptor gene in childhood and adolescent males with first-onset major depressive disorder and association with related symptomatology.

This study was designed to explore the association between CAG repeats in AR gene and major depressive disorder (MDD) in male children and adolescents. The results showed that there were differences between adolescent depressive patients and adolescent controls in CAG repeats' length and alleles' distributions, and the severity of depression and anxiety was negatively correlated with the length of CAG repeats in adolescent patients. This suggested that AR gene might be involved in the depressive upset in adolescents, and the age- and sex-related prevalent differences might also be associated to CAG repeats.

Comparison of the polymorphisms of androgen receptor gene and estrogen alpha and beta gene between adolescent females with first-onset major depressive disorder and controls.

This study was to elucidate the role of genetic variation in androgen receptor (AR) gene, estrogen receptor alpha (ER alpha) and ER beta gene on first-onset major depressive disorder (MDD) in female adolescents. Results showed that AR gene in MDD group have shorter microsatellites' length, and ER beta gene have shorter microsatellites' length and higher rates of S alleles, SS, genotype, and lower rate of LL genotype than control group. The results suggest that shorter length of AR and ER beta gene microsatellites might influence the onset of MDD in female adolescents, a further elucidation of the mechanisms is warranted.

Association analysis of serotonin transporter promoter gene polymorphism with ADHD and related symptomatology.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common childhood behavioral disorders. Genetic factors contribute to the underlying liability to develop attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Several investigations have reported associations between ADHD and serotonin transporter promoter polymorphisms, but the results have been inconsistent. The present study did not find significant association between ADHD and serotonin transporter promoter polymorphisms, but did find an effect of serotonin transporter promoter polymorphisms on some ADHD symptomatology. Patients homozygous for the short allele showed more Withdrawn or Somatic complaint scores than subjects with the long allele.