[Clinical zoanthropy: a woman with the rare delusion of being an animal]. / Klinische zoantropie; een vrouw met de zeldzame waan een dier te zijn.

Clinical zoanthropy, or the conviction of having turned into an animal, is a rare delusion. There are different views about its pathogenesis. This delusion can occur with an underlying psychiatric disorder, but it can also be secondary to structural or functional disorders of the brain. Additional investigations with brain imaging and electroencephalogram are therefore advised. Treatment for the underlying disorder is recommended. In this case report we describe a 54-year-old woman who was briefly convinced she was a chicken, followed by a generalized seizure. We discuss the epidemiology, theories about pathogenesis and treatment advice for clinical zoanthropy. We also discuss the possible relevance of epilepsy to this matter. With this case report, we hope to contribute to documenting this rare, but possibly underreported phenomenon.

[Prevention of psychiatric disorders and suicide in the Belgium population older than 60 years. Results of the European Study on Epidemiology of Mental Disorders (ESEMeD)]. / Het voorkomen van psychische stoornissen en suïcidaliteit in de Belgische bevolking ouder dan 60 jaar. Resultaten van de European Study on Epidemiology of Mental Disorders (ESEMeD).

PURPOSE: This study aimed to examine the 12-month and lifetime prevalence rates of pure and comorbid mental disorders (mood, anxiety and alcohol disorders) in Belgian home-dwelling elderly. METHODS: A representative random sample of 665 non-instutionalized older adults (60+) from Belgium was interviewed in 2000 and 2001. DSM-IV disorders were assessed by interviewers trained to use a revised version of the World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview (WMH-CIDI) of the World Health Organization. RESULTS: Twenty percent of the respondents reported a lifetime history of at least one mental disorder; 5% met criteria for a a mental disorder in the past twelve months. Mood and anxiety disorders were the most common mental disorders. Almost 5% of the respondents reported suicidal ideation in their lifetime, while 0.22% had suicidal ideation in the past twelve months preceding the interview. CONCLUSIONS: Mental disorders are not uncommon in the Belgian home-dwelling elderly. The results of this study imply that in 2000-2001 at least five percent of the older adults living in the community had at least one mental disorder. Two in thousand older adults reported suicidal ideations in the 12 months preceding the interview.

Tamsulosin as an effective treatment for reboxetine-associated urinary hesitancy.

Reboxetine, the only selective noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, is an effective and well tolerated antidepressant. Although reboxetine has no anticholinergic effects, urinary hesitancy/retention is occasionally observed in male patients. A peripheral noradrenergic mechanism of action has been suggested as being responsible for this side-effect. To test this hypothesis, the alpha1A-receptor antagonist, tamsulosin, was administered to six male patients who developed urinary hesitancy in association with reboxetine treatment. The evolution of the severity of the urinary hesitancy was assessed using the American Urological Association (AUA) symptom index and a (dis)satisfaction item score. Tamsulosin (0.4 mg/day) rapidly ameliorated symptoms in all patients. After 1 week of tamsulosin treatment, total AUA symptom index score and the (dis)satisfaction item score had decreased significantly (P = 0.04 and P = 0.007, respectively). Furthermore, tamsulosin was well tolerated in all patients. These results suggest that tamsulosin is an effective treatment for reboxetine-associated urinary hesitancy.