Rates of Vaccination against COVID-19 in Psychiatric Outpatients.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare the rates of vaccination against COVID-19 infection in psychiatric outpatients and the general population, as well as rates of infected patients. In addition, the level and type of anxiety due to the pandemic were observed in patients with psychotic, anxiety, and depressive disorders. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In the present study, 171 patients with pre-existing mental disorders completed the questionnaire about the doses and types of vaccination against COVID-19. During 2021-2023, patients with different mental disorders, aged from 18 to 80, were included. All patients filled in a self-reported questionnaire including general information (age, sex, marriage, education, working status, comorbid conditions) as well as questions about mental health, receiving vaccination, and the course of COVID-19 infection if it was present. All patients gave informed consent for the interview. RESULTS: Patients with pre-existing mental disorders were more likely to be vaccinated against COVID-19 compared with the general population. The Sinopharm vaccine was most frequently applied. In the observed patients, 46.8% were infected, but just 7% had a medium or serious form of infection and were not vaccinated. CONCLUSIONS: In our study, the percentage of vaccinated psychiatric patients was greater than that in the general population, except in psychotic patients, who were mostly limited by fear. Such results can be explained by the high percentage of somatic comorbidities in this population and perhaps insufficient information about the positive effects of vaccination.

Importance of Capgras syndrome in shared psychotic disorder: a case report.

Shared psychotic disorder characterized by Capgras syndrome is an extremely rare condition. To our knowledge, there are only a few published papers on this condition. This paper presents a case of shared Capgras syndrome in two sisters. The inducer was a younger sister with schizophrenia, who passed on her Capgras delusion to her older sister after the death of their father. After committing a violent offense caused by Capgras delusion, a court ordered the sisters' involuntary admission to a psychiatric hospital. After being separated and receiving antipsychotic treatment, the sisters showed substantial improvement. However, shortly after hospital discharge, they stopped taking their medication and disappeared. After 15 years, their mother died and shortly afterwards, the sisters were re-admitted for forensic psychiatric evaluation after another violent crime caused by Capgras delusion. Timely recognition, adequate treatment and maintaining a therapeutic alliance could contribute to a better clinical course and outcome of this disorder, and reduce the risk of violent behavior.

Comparison of binge-eating disorder and food addiction.

In the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, binge-eating disorder (BED) is classified as episodes of binge eating while not being hungry, eating too fast until feeling uncomfortably full, or eating in solitude with feelings of shame and disgust after eating, without compensatory mechanisms. The controversial disorder food addiction (FA) is characterized by overconsumption, cravings, failure to cut down on amounts of food, and withdrawal and tolerance to overeating. In this narrative review, we aimed to comprehensively characterize and compare BED and FA. We searched PubMed using the keywords "binge-eating disorder" and "food addiction." We finally included 51 publications according to topic specificity, credibility, the authors' reputation, and non-bias criteria. BED is characterized by concerns about dietary issues, body shape, and weight as well as depressive symptoms and brooding rumination. FA can be divided into substance addiction and behavioral addiction, which can be differentiated using a list of criteria including hunger, taste, pleasure, function of food, loss of social connections, weight concerns, and awareness about the disorder. Further research is needed to further characterize and distinguish BED and FA.