PLATELET SEROTONIN AS BIOMARKER FOR ASSESSING SUICIDAL BEHAVIOUR IN PATIENTS WITH BIPOLAR I DISORDER.

CONTEXT: Suicide is a global public health issue. Bipolar disorder (BPD) has the highest suicide risk among individuals suffering from mental disorders. Serotoninergic dysfunctions have been linked to suicidal behaviour and platelet serotonin is recognised as a reliable index for the presynaptic serotonin activity. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to assess whether alterations occur in platelet serotonin concentrations in BPD type I in respect to suicide attempters compared with non-attempters. DESIGN: This was a cross-sectional, observational study. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Plasma platelet serotonin concentrations were measured using ELISA technique in 71 BPD I patients. The participants were assigned into 3 groups (non-attempters, low lethality and high lethality suicide attempters), according to the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale. Socio-demographical and clinical data was obtained by using MINI 6.0 and a semi-structured questionnaire designed specifically for this research. RESULTS: Our study showed significant lower levels of platelet serotonin in suicide attempters compared with non-attempters (p = 0.030) and in high-lethality attempters compared with low-lethality attempters (p = 0.015). The study recorded a higher number of total lifetime and lifetime depressive episodes for suicide attempters with BPD I. CONCLUSIONS: Our results subscribe to the importance of platelet serotonin as a reliable biomarker in suicide risk assessment.

Familial sinistrality and handedness in patients with first episode schizophrenia: the EUFEST study.

The population with schizophrenia is characterised by a leftward shift in handedness-sinistrality. However, findings are inconsistent in chronic patients, and familial sinistrality (FS), defined as the presence of left-handed close relatives, might contribute to the discrepancies. Therefore the aim of this study was to investigate the strength of manual lateralisation in patients with first episode schizophrenia, taking into account familial sinistrality. The Edinburgh Inventory (EI) allowed us to categorise 179 patients from the EUFEST study and 189 controls presenting "strong handedness" (SH: EI absolute value between ∣81∣ and ∣100∣) or "weak-handedness" (WH: EI value between -80 and +80). The nominal logistic regression did not show an FS effect, but a nearly significant interaction between illness and FS (p =.07). There were fewer participants without FS presenting SH among patients (99/151: 65.6%) than among controls (134/164: 81.7%, p =.001). In contrast, the number of participants with FS presenting SH was similar between controls (68%) and patients (75%, p =.57). The presence of left-handed relatives (FS + ) tended to reduce manual lateralisation, but only in controls. This supports the notion that reduced manual lateralisation in schizophrenia is related to the illness rather than to familial left-handedness.

[New trends in the classification of personality disorders]. / Tendinte recente în taxonomia tulburarilor de personalitate.

The author makes an overview of the latest theoretical developments and of the critical views on the current classification of personality disorders. The major topics of the ongoing debate over the typology of personality disorders as presented by DSM-IV-TR are listed as the difficulties that remain in clarifying the clinical criteria, despite the clinical assessment tools and the self-assessment questionnaires that are usually employed in research. The solution to the dilemma categorical vs. dimensional in personality disorders taxonomy, as suggested by some current authors in dimensionally quantifying the diagnosis criteria for the classic types of personality disorders has received much attention. But the relevant practical solutions need more longitudinal future studies done on a congruent agenda.