Nerve growth factor gene polymorphisms may be associated with heroin dependence in women but do not mediate specific personality traits.

Heroin dependence (HD) is a complex disease with a substantial genetic contribution and is associated with traits of impulsivity and specific personality traits. The neurotrophic factor nerve growth factor (NGF) may mediate the reward processes in HD. This study aims to investigate whether NGF gene polymorphisms are associated with the co-occurrence of HD and impulsivity/specific personality traits in HD patients. To minimize the potential confounding effects of population stratification, we selected a homogeneous Han Chinese population and recruited 1364 participants (831 HD patients and 533 healthy controls). In addition, 163 female HD patients completed the Chinese version of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale Version 11 (BIS-11), and 440 HD patients completed the Chinese version of the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ) for subsequent analysis. We identified three polymorphisms with altered allele and genotype frequency in HD patients versus controls (p = 0.035 for rs2254527; p = 0.005 for rs6678788; p = 0.006 for rs7523654), especially in the female subgroup. Four associations identified via haplotype analysis were significant in the female subgroup (p = 0.003 for T-T-A haplotype and p = 0.002 for C-C-A haplotype in block 1; p = 0.011 for T-T haplotype and p = 0.009 for C-T haplotypes in block 2), but not in the male subgroup. Male HD patients had higher novelty-seeking (NS) scores, and female HD patients had higher harm avoidance (HA) scores. However, there was no significant association between the selected NGF polymorphisms and BIS or TPQ scores in HD patients. NGF variants may contribute to the risk of HD development in females but do not mediate the relationship between impulsivity and specific personality traits in the female population.

Psychometric properties of the Arabic version of Barratt Impulsiveness Scale 11: The development of short form.

Impulsivity is an important mental health-related variable that has been associated with various human behaviors. The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale is the most frequently used measure to examine impulsivity. However, its psychometric and factor structure was not examined in Arabic speaking population. The goal of the current study was to examine the psychometric properties and factor structure of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale in Arabic speaking population. The current study used a cross-sectional design. Two independent samples were recruited: college students (N = 250) and persons with heart failure (N = 165). Exploratory factor analysis, then a series of confirmatory factor analyses were used to assess one- and three-factor models of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (30 items; i.e., BIS-11) and Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (15 items; i.e., BIS-15). Because our analysis did not support the factor structure of the previous versions of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale, we used confirmatory factor analysis to evaluate the model structure of the single-factor measure. To assess the measurement invariance, the newly developed measure was examined across different genders and populations. Due to poor psychometrics of BIS-11 and BIS-15, a short form (BIS-SF) was developed; and validity, reliability, and measurement invariance were supported. The current analysis showed that BIS-11 and BIS-15 have poor psychometrics. Thus, there was a need to improve the measure by reducing the number of items and re-evaluating the psychometrics of the new measure. The BIS-SF is a reliable, valid tool to assess impulsivity in our samples. Other studies need to support the current study findings in populations with other chronic illnesses.

Role of White Matter Microstructure in Impulsive Behavior.

OBJECTIVE: Increased impulsivity is a hallmark trait of some neuropsychiatric illnesses, including addiction, traumatic brain injury, and externalizing disorders. The authors hypothesized that altered cerebral white matter microstructure may also underwrite normal individual variability in impulsive behaviors and tested this among healthy individuals. METHODS: Impulsivity and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data were collected from 74 healthy adults (32 women; mean age=36.6 years [SD=13.6]). Impulsivity was evaluated using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11, which provides a total score and scores for three subdomains: attentional, motor, and nonplanning impulsiveness. DTI was processed using the Enhancing Neuro Imaging Genetics Through Meta Analysis-DTI analysis pipeline to measure whole-brain and regional white matter fractional anisotropy (FA) values in 24 tracts. RESULTS: Whole-brain total average FA was inversely correlated with motor impulsiveness (r=-0.32, p=0.007) and positively correlated with nonplanning impulsiveness (r=0.29, p=0.02); these correlations were significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Additional significant correlations were observed for motor impulsiveness and regional FA values for the corticospinal tract (r=-0.29, p=0.01) and for nonplanning impulsiveness and regional FA values for the superior fronto-occipital fasciculus (r=0.32, p=0.008). CONCLUSIONS: These results provide initial evidence that the motor and nonplanning subdomains of impulsive behavior are linked to specific white matter microstructural connectivity, supporting the notion that impulsivity is in part a network-based construct involving white matter microstructural integrity among otherwise healthy populations.

Validation of a short Italian version of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-15) in non-clinical subjects: psychometric properties and normative data.

INTRODUCTION: The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS) is a questionnaire employed to measure impulsivity, which is associated with risky behaviors and mental disorders. We aimed to assess the psychometric properties of the BIS in the Italian general population and provide normative data for clinical use. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional survey methodology was employed to collect data. Then, 534 participants of different ages and educational levels completed the BIS, PHQ-9, GAD-7, and S-UPPS-P. We designed an ad hoc data-driven outcome checklist to identify which items deserved to be retained. Furthermore, internal consistency, convergent and divergent validity, and factorial structure were evaluated. A regression-based procedure was used to explore the influence of demographic variables on the BIS score and to provide adjusting factors and a sensitive cutoff. RESULTS: Item analysis suggested removing 15 items. Consequently, we tested the psychometric properties of a shorter version of the BIS (BIS-15). IRT test information functions indicated an almost identical measurement precision of the BIS-15 as compared to the original BIS. The BIS-15 demonstrated reliable internal consistency and good convergent and divergent validity. The PCA revealed a four-factor solution: "pure impulsivity," "planning and thinking," "lack of attention and concentration," and "impulsive buying." A significant effect of sex and years of education was found. Norms for the adjustment of raw scores were provided (cutoff = 37.39). CONCLUSIONS: The BIS-15 showed almost identical psychometric properties as compared with the original scale, reducing the administration time. Our norms may allow identifying individuals with impulsivity of clinical interest.

Comorbid impulsivity after one year of epilepsy surgery.

BACKGROUND: Psychiatric comorbidities in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) are frequently observed before and after epilepsy surgery. Impulsivity, defined as behaviors that are poorly conceived, are also frequent among patients with epilepsy. The aim of this study was to determine the presence of comorbid impulsivity in patients with DRE after one year of epilepsy surgery. METHODS: Patients who underwent epilepsy surgery for DRE and completed the postsurgical assessment protocol one year after surgery were included. All patients underwent a presurgical protocol comprising of neurological, psychiatric, neuropsychological, video-EEG and MRI assessments. The psychiatric evaluation was performed before and one year after surgery using SCID-I, SCID-II, GAF scale of DSM IV, and Beck Depression Inventory II. One year after surgery, Barratt Impulsiveness Scale 11, and Engel classification of seizures, were administered. RESULTS: A total of 38 patients were included in this study, 21 women (55.3%) and 17 men (44.7%), mean age 36 years (SD = 9.4). Higher impulsivity was associated with a worse epilepsy seizure outcome (p < 0.05), one year after surgery. According to the multiple linear regression analysis, a worse epilepsy seizure outcome was associated with higher levels of nonplanning impulsivity (p < 0.05) (p < 0.05, ß -0.5, r2 0.25). The GAF score was negatively associated with motor score (p < 0.05, ß -0.584, r2 0.42) and with the total BIS-11 score (p < 0.05, ß -0.557, r2 0.39). CONCLUSIONS: Impulsivity has been associated with a worse post-surgical seizure outcome. Larger studies about impulsivity might confirm these preliminary findings.

Self-rated impulsivity in healthy individuals, substance use disorder and ADHD: psychometric properties of the Swedish Barratt impulsiveness scale.

BACKGROUND: Impulsivity is associated with several psychiatric disorders, including substance use disorders (SUD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A widely used questionnaire to assess impulsivity is the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS), and the aim of the current study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Swedish version of the BIS (swe-BIS). METHODS: The original BIS was translated to Swedish and back-translated by an authorized translator. The swe-BIS was administered to healthy controls (n = 113), patients with alcohol use disorder (n = 97), amphetamine use disorder (n = 37) and attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD; n = 26). A subset of subjects (n = 62) completed the swe-BIS twice within 1 week. Psychometric evaluation of the swe-BIS included assessment of different indices of reliability (internal consistency, test-retest and agreement) and validity (response processess, divergent and convergent). Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were performed to assess several indices of model fit in five different models based on previously suggested subscales. RESULTS: Cronbach's alpha for all swe-BIS items in the full sample was 0.89, ranging from 0.78-0.87 within the different subgroups. The Pearson test-retest correlation for total score was 0.78 (p < 0.001), with greater test-retest correlations within compared to across different subscales. The Bland-Altman plot indicated high level of agreement between test and retest. The healthy individuals had lower swe-BIS score compared to the patients (t(267.3) = - 8.6; p < 0.001), and the swe-BIS total score was also significantly different between each of the four participant groups (p < 0.01 for all group comparisons). Furthermore, swe-BIS had greater correlations with impulsivity related scales compared to non-impulsivity related scales. The CFA analyses indicated that while no suggested model showed an optimal fit, the best model fit indices was found for the 3-factor model. CONCLUSIONS: The swe-BIS was found to have good to excellent psychometric properties with respect to the assessed indices of reliability and validity, supporting use of the scale in clinical research in both healthy individuals and patients with SUD and ADHD.

The Latent Genetic Structure of Impulsivity and Its Relation to Internalizing Psychopathology.

Factor analyses suggest that impulsivity traits that capture tendencies to act prematurely or take risks tap partially distinct constructs. We applied genomic structure equation modeling to evaluate the genetic factor structure of two well-established impulsivity questionnaires, using published statistics from genome-wide association studies of up to 22,861 participants. We also tested the hypotheses that delay discounting would be genetically separable from other impulsivity factors and that emotionally triggered facets of impulsivity (urgency) would be those most strongly genetically correlated with an internalizing latent factor. A five-factor model best fitted the impulsivity data. Delay discounting was genetically distinct from these five factors. As expected, the two urgency subscales were most strongly related to an internalizing-psychopathology latent factor. These findings provide empirical genetic evidence that impulsivity can be broken down into distinct categories of differential relevance for internalizing psychopathology. They also demonstrate how measured genetic markers can be used to inform theories of psychology and personality.

Trait impulsivity correlates with active myoclonic seizures in genetic generalized epilepsy.

BACKGROUND: Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME) is a common subtype of genetic generalized epilepsy (GGE) arising in adolescence and is often associated with executive function (EF) deficits. Some EF components like response inhibition have been extensively evaluated in JME, but few studies have focused upon trait impulsivity or compared between GGE subtypes. The aim of the present study was to compare the association of trait impulsivity in JME with other GGE subtypes. METHODS: Patients with GGE aged between 14 and 40 years (n = 137) were divided into those with JME (n = 92) and those with other GGEs (n = 45: 8 childhood absence epilepsy (CAE), 22 juvenile absence epilepsy (JAE), and 15 epilepsy with generalized tonic-clonic seizures only (EGTCS)). The study participants were recruited through medical records of the general population of Buskerud County and the neighboring municipalities, covering 477,000 people or 9.1% of Norway's total population. All participants underwent a clinical interview including the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS), an established measure of trait impulsivity. We controlled for other potential predictors of BIS score using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). RESULTS: There were no differences between JME and other types of GGE for BIS scores, but the presence of myoclonic seizures within the last year, irrespective of GGE subtype, was independently associated with significantly increased behavioral impulsivity. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that trait impulsivity in GGE is most strongly related to the recent occurrence of myoclonic seizures rather than GGE subtype.

Family History of Alcohol Abuse Associated with Higher Impulsivity in Patients with Alcohol Use Disorder: A Multisite Study.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is to a high degree heritable, and in clinical practice it is common to assert presence of alcohol abuse family history (FH) in treatment-seeking AUD patients. Patients with AUD also exhibit cognitive deficits, including elevated impulsivity and impairments in executive functions (EF), but less is known regarding the relation between FH and these cognitive domains. The aim of the current study was to investigate if alcohol abuse FH in AUD patients is associated with a specific cognitive profile. METHODS: Patients with AUD (n = 197) from Sweden (n = 106) and Belgium (n = 91) were recruited. Self-rated impulsivity was assessed by the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS). EF assessed were response inhibition (stop signal task), attention (rapid visual processing task), and working memory (digit span). A series of linear regression models were run to explore the effect of FH on cognitive outcomes. RESULTS: A FH of alcohol abuse was associated with elevated score in self-rated impulsivity assessed by the BIS, with the greatest effect on the subscale of nonplanning. There was no statistically significant association between FH and any of the other neuropsychological task outcomes. CONCLUSION: Presence of alcohol abuse FH within AUD patients could be a marker of higher impulsivity, which may have clinical implications regarding diagnostic evaluation and treatment.

Impulse Control and ERP Characteristics of Patients with Mental Disorder Caused by Traumatic Brain Injury.

ABSTRACT: Objective To explore the impulse control and event-related potential （ERP） characteristics of patients with mental disorders caused by traumatic brain injury （TBI） in forensic psychiatry identification and to provide objective auxiliary indicators for forensic psychiatry identification. Methods Thirty patients （TBI group） with mental disorders caused by traumatic brain injury, who were identified as mild psychiatric impairment by judicial psychiatry, including 24 males and 6 females, as well as the thirty people in the control group participated in the study. All the participants completed Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 （BIS-11） and ERP induced by Go/NoGo tasks. BIS-11 and ERP data were collected and analyzed. Results The results of the BIS-11 showed that the total score and subscale scores of the TBI group were higher compared to the control group （P<0.05）. Moreover, the TBI group exhibited significantly lower NoGo-N2 amplitude and lower NoGo-P3 amplitude than the control group. The NoGo-N2 amplitude was larger than the Go-N2 amplitude, and the NoGo-P3 amplitude was larger than the Go-P3 amplitude in both groups （P<0.05）. Conclusion Traumatic brain injury could impair impulse control of mild psychiatric impairment patients, and the amplitudes of NoGo-N2 and NoGo-P3 could be important parameters to evaluate the impulse control of patients with mental disorders caused by traumatic brain injury.

Intrinsic Network Connectivity Patterns Underlying Specific Dimensions of Impulsiveness in Healthy Young Adults.

Impulsiveness is a central human personality trait and of high relevance for the development of several mental disorders. Impulsiveness is a multidimensional construct, yet little is known about dimension-specific neural correlates. Here, we address the question whether motor, attentional and non-planning components, as measured by the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11), are associated with distinct or overlapping neural network activity. In this study, we investigated brain activity at rest and its relationship to distinct dimensions of impulsiveness in 30 healthy young adults (m/f = 13/17; age mean/SD = 26.4/2.6 years) using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging at 3T. A spatial independent component analysis and a multivariate model selection strategy were used to identify systems loading on distinct impulsivity domains. We first identified eight networks for which we had a-priori hypotheses. These networks included basal ganglia, cortical motor, cingulate and lateral prefrontal systems. From the eight networks, three were associated with impulsiveness measures (p < 0.05, FDR corrected). There were significant relationships between right frontoparietal network function and all three BIS domains. Striatal and midcingulate network activity was associated with motor impulsiveness only. Within the networks regionally confined effects of age and gender were found. These data suggest distinct and overlapping patterns of neural activity underlying specific dimensions of impulsiveness. Motor impulsiveness appears to be specifically related to striatal and midcingulate network activity, in contrast to a domain-unspecific right frontoparietal system. Effects of age and gender have to be considered in young healthy samples.

Inhibitory Control and Impulsivity Levels in Women Crack Users.

OBJECTIVE: investigate impulsivity levels and inhibitory control in women crack users and explore the relationships between impulsivity and inhibitory control. METHOD AND DESIGN: 52 healthy women (M = 32.83 years; SD = 9.54) and 46 crack cocaine users (M = 31.02 years; SD = 7.73), in abstinence, performed the assessment protocol included a Sociodemographic Data Questionnaire, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), a GO/No-Go Task and the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11). It was a quantitative research with cross-sectional design and control group. RESULTS: crack group showed higher levels of impulsivity in all domains when compared to the control group (crack group M = 76.39, SD = 11.39, control group M = 58.53, SD = 10.76, p <.01). Participants from the crack group presented a significantly higher total reaction time in the Go-NoGo task (F(1,93) = 9.93, p =.002; effect size =.09, observed power =.87) and significantly more commission (F(1,93) = 7.20, p =.009; effect size =.07, observed power =.75) and omission errors (F(1,93) = 6.04, p =.01; effect size =.06, observed power =.68), in Go/NoGo Task. Groups did also significantly differ on total standard deviations suggesting that variability in total reaction time was significantly greater in the crack group. Results showed that only in the crack group there were significant correlations between Go-NoGo parameters and Barratt Impulsiveness Scale. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings are consistent that impulsivity and inhibitory control are closely linked to crack use in women. Future studies should consider to evaluate crack users in different withdrawal times, controlling the impact of abstinence time in the variables studied.

Interactive and indirect effects of trait impulsivity facets on body mass index.

Impulsivity is a personality trait that may be a risk factor for overweight and obesity. Increasing evidence suggests, however, that only specific facets of impulsivity are associated with eating- and weight-related variables. Moreover, there seem to be interactive effects such that eating-related self-regulation is low when more than one impulsivity facet is elevated. Finally, the effect of impulsivity on body weight appears to be indirect, that is, is mediated by eating behaviors. In the current study, 790 adults (83% female, 80% students) completed a short form of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale and the Perceived Self-Regulatory Success in Dieting Scale online and reported their current height and weight. Scores on attentional and motor impulsivity were interactively associated with perceived self-regulatory success in weight regulation: Higher attentional impulsivity was associated with lower perceived self-regulatory success at high levels of motor impulsivity, but not at low levels of motor impulsivity. A moderated mediation model revealed an indirect effect of attentional impulsivity on body mass index (BMI) via perceived self-regulatory success in weight regulation at high, but not low levels of motor impulsivity. Non-planning impulsivity was unrelated to perceived self-regulatory success in weight regulation and BMI. Results support previous findings such that attentional and motor impulsivity are interactively associated with eating- and weight-related measures. Specifically, eating-related self-regulation is low when both attentional and motor impulsivity levels are high. Moreover, results further support that self-reported trait impulsivity is not directly related to BMI, but indirectly via eating behaviors as potential mediators.

Subscales of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale differentially relate to the Big Five factors of personality.

The place of impulsiveness in multidimensional personality frameworks is still unclear. In particular, no consensus has yet been reached with regard to the relation of impulsiveness to Neuroticism and Extraversion. We aim to contribute to a clearer understanding of these relationships by accounting for the multidimensional structure of impulsiveness. In three independent studies, we related the subscales of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS) to the Big Five factors of personality. Study 1 investigated the associations between the BIS subscales and the Big Five factors as measured by the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) in a student sample (N = 113). Selective positive correlations emerged between motor impulsiveness and Extraversion and between attentional impulsiveness and Neuroticism. This pattern of results was replicated in Study 2 (N = 132) using a 10-item short version of the Big Five Inventory. In Study 3, we analyzed BIS and NEO-FFI data obtained from a sample of patients with pathological buying (N = 68). In these patients, the relationship between motor impulsiveness and Extraversion was significantly weakened when compared to the non-clinical samples. At the same time, the relationship between attentional impulsiveness and Neuroticism was substantially stronger in the clinical sample. Our studies highlight the utility of the BIS subscales for clarifying the relationship between impulsiveness and the Big Five personality factors. We conclude that impulsiveness might occupy multiple places in multidimensional personality frameworks, which need to be specified to improve the interpretability of impulsiveness scales.

Impulsivity, perceived self-regulatory success in dieting, and body mass in children and adolescents: A moderated mediation model.

Impulsivity has been suggested to contribute to overeating and obesity. However, findings are inconsistent and it appears that only specific facets of impulsivity are related to eating-related variables and to body mass. In the current study, relationships between self-reported impulsivity, perceived self-regulatory success in dieting, and objectively measured body mass were examined in N = 122 children and adolescents. Scores on attentional and motor impulsivity interactively predicted perceived self-regulatory success in dieting, but not body mass: Higher attentional impulsivity was associated with lower perceived self-regulatory success at high levels of motor impulsivity, but not at low levels of motor impulsivity. A moderated mediation model revealed an indirect effect of attentional and motor impulsivity on body mass, which was mediated by perceived self-regulatory success in dieting. Thus, results show that only specific facets of impulsivity are relevant in eating- and weight-regulation and interact with each other in the prediction of these variables. These facets of impulsivity, however, are not directly related to higher body mass, but indirectly via lower success in eating-related self-regulation in children and adolescents.

A web-based study of bipolarity and impulsivity in athletes engaging in extreme and high-risk sports.

BACKGROUND: We hypothesised that men and women who engage in extreme or high-risk sports would score higher on standardised measures of bipolarity and impulsivity compared to age and gender matched controls. METHODS: Four-hundred and eighty extreme or high-risk athletes (255 males and 225 females) and 235 age-matched control persons (107 males and 128 females) were enrolled into the web-based case-control study. The Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) and Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) were administered to screen for bipolarity and impulsive behaviours, respectively. RESULTS: Results indicated that extreme or high-risk athletes had significantly higher scores of bipolarity and impulsivity, and lower scores on cognitive complexity of the BIS-11, compared to controls. Further, there were positive correlations between the MDQ and BIS-11 scores. CONCLUSION: These results showed greater rates of bipolarity and impulsivity, in the extreme or high-risk athletes, suggesting these measures are sensitive to high-risk behaviours.

Improving impulsivity assessment using movement recognition: A pilot study.

The Continuous Performance Test (CPT) is a widely used computerized test to assess impulsivity. This article proposes the use of a CPT variant based on movement recognition to obtain more accurate measurements of impulsivity. In this pilot study, 22 volunteers participated in a CPT experiment responding to the stimuli by raising his or her dominant hand instead of pressing the space bar in a keyboard. Using this method, correlations of self-reported impulsivity with number of commission errors and average reaction time improved those obtained with standard CPT.

Relationship between impulsivity and obsession types in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

OBJECTIVE: Impulsivity is an important aspect of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) which is classified under a new heading in DSM-5 with other impulsivity related disorders like trichotillomania. Due to its heterogeneous nature, different obsessions may be linked to varying impulsivity profiles. Aim of this study was to investigate the impulsivity traits and their relationship with obsession types by comparing OCD subjects who display sexual, religious and aggressive obsessions or other obsessions to healthy controls. METHODS: Outpatients with OCD (n = 146) and healthy controls (n = 80) were evaluated with Sociodemographic Data Form, SCID-I, SCID non-patient version, Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11). RESULTS: BIS-11 attention scores of the OCD group were significantly higher than healthy subjects. In patients with sexual, aggressive, religious obsessions, BIS-11 attention scores were significantly higher than those who have other obsession types and that of controls. CONCLUSIONS: Higher levels of attentional impulsivity, particularly in patients suffering from sexual, aggressive or religious obsessions suggest a common diathesis for a dysfunction in neural correlates corresponding to these symptoms. The results of our study may promote further studies conducted with more advanced and objective neuropsychometric tests evaluating features of the clinical course, neurobiology and the response to OCD treatment.

Distinct domains of impulsivity are impaired in juvenile myoclonic epilepsy but not in temporal lobe epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE: The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) is the most widely used questionnaire to study impulsivity in persons with psychiatric disorders, but it has rarely been applied to persons with epilepsy. The present study aimed to evaluate the usefulness of BIS-11 as a tool to explore impulsivity in two distinct epilepsy syndromes. METHOD: The BIS-11 was applied to 20 patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME) (32.5±8.95years old), 20 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) (37.7±13.25years old), and 26 healthy controls (31.86±11.25years old). The scores in motor, attentional, and lack of planning impulsivity were compared between groups. RESULTS: Patients with JME showed higher scores than patients with TLE and controls in all domains: motor (JME vs TLE: 28.60 vs 13.25 (mean score), p<0.001 and JME vs controls: 28.60 vs 14.12, p<0.001), attentional (JME vs TLE: 21.55 vs 13.45, p<0.001 and JME vs controls: 21.55 vs 14.88, p<0.001) and nonplanning (JME vs TLE: 28.05 vs 13.10, p<0.001 and JME vs controls: 28.05 vs 16.15, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Higher BIS-11 scores in all domains of impulsivity [i.e., motor, attentional, and lack of planning] corroborated previous findings described in patients with JME. On the other hand, BIS-11 could not demonstrate problem solving and inhibitory control deficits related to impulsive behavior, which were described in patients with TLE. Other behavioral measures may be more sensitive to some aspects of impulsivity in TLE. Our results reinforce the concept that distinct epileptic syndromes require different neuropsychological approaches, especially considering a complex construct such as impulsivity.

Sex differences in neurophysiological responses are modulated by attentional aspects of impulse control.

The amplitudes of the N2 and P3 components of event-related potentials (ERPs) may be influenced by personality traits such as impulsivity, and male/female differences may also have an effect. However, few studies have assessed the interaction between personality traits and the sex of the subject in these components. Therefore, in this study we evaluated sex differences in the amplitudes of the N2 and P3 ERP components during a continuous performance task, and their relation to impulse control. Twenty-seven healthy participants were asked to perform an AX-type continuous performance task, also known as a Go/Nogo task, during electroencephalographic recording. Participants then completed the Barratt impulsiveness scale (version 11; BIS-11), and the effortful control (EC) scale to self-report personality measures related to impulse control. We found that in the Nogo condition, males showed significantly larger N2 amplitudes than females in the frontal area. Interestingly, Nogo-N2 amplitudes were positively correlated with BIS-attentional subscale scores, but were negatively correlated with EC-attentional subscale scores, and both correlations were observed only in males. These results suggest that attentional aspects of impulse control modulate Nogo-N2 amplitude only in males. This modulatory effect may be related to a sex-specific inhibitory control mechanism acting during early stimulus evaluation.