Psychiatry Research RSS feed: Current Issue. The journal provides very rapid publication of short but complete research reports in the field of psychiatry. The scope of the journal encompasses: (1) Biochemical, physiological, genetic, psychological, and social determinants of human behavior; (2) assessment of human behavior and subjective state; (3) evaluation of somatic and non-somatic psychiatric treatments. In addition, reports of clinically related basic studies in the fields of neuropharmacology, neurochemistry, neuroendocrinology, electrophysiology, psychology, genetics, and brain imaging are published. Significant methodological advances such as instrumentation, clinical scales, and assays directly applicable to psychiatric research are also appropriate. Brief reviews, theoretical contributions, and letters to the editor will be considered. http://www.psy-journal.com/?rss=yesElsevier Inc.en © 2009 Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Psychiatry Research0165-1781175328 February 2010 © 2009 Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. healthpermissions@elsevier.comhttp://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109005101/abstract?rss=yesEditorial Board10.1016/S0165-1781(09)00510-1Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8IFCIFChttp://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109000110/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: There is substantial evidence suggesting that individual variability in antipsychotic treatment response could be genetically determined. Variations in several serotonin transporter (5-HTT) gene polymorphisms have been associated with antipsychotic response among chronic patients with schizophrenia, although their implication in early response among first-episode patients remains unclear. Two polymorphisms in the 5-HTT gene (a 44 bp insertion/deletion in the promoter region and the functional polymorphism rs25531) were genotyped in a sample of 147 drug-naïve patients experiencing a first episode of a non-affective psychosis. Early (6 weeks) response to antipsychotic treatment with haloperidol, olanzapine or risperidone was assessed with the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms, and the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms. No clear association was found between the rs25531 variant and treatment response. However, significant associations were observed between 5-HTT-LPR variants and early negative symptom response among first-episode patients with psychosis. Our results suggest a minor contribution to antipsychotic drug response of genetic alterations in the 5-HTT gene.Serotonin transporter polymorphisms and early response to antipsychotic treatment in first episode of psychosisJavier Vázquez-Bourgon, Maria Jesús Arranz, Ignacio Mata, José María Pelayo-Terán, Rocío Pérez-Iglesias, Laura Medina-González, Eugenio Carrasco-Marín, José Luis Vázquez-Barquero, Benedicto Crespo-Facorro10.1016/j.psychres.2008.12.011Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Schizophrenia Spectrum189194http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178108002345/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Schizophrenia is a chronic disorder that is usually characterized by relapses alternating with periods of full or partial remission. We examined whether combined therapy with a psychosocial intervention for relapse prevention (PIRP) and risperidone administered by long-acting injection (RLAI) would be more effective in reducing relapses than RLAI with treatment-as-usual (TAU) among outpatients with schizophrenia. We conducted a prospective, controlled study over 2 years in 46 patients with schizophrenia receiving RLAI, of which 21 and 25 patients were assigned to the PIRP and TAU control groups, respectively. The 1- and 2-year relapse rates were lower and medication compliance was higher in the PIRP group than in the TAU group. Cox proportional analysis revealed that time from baseline to relapse was associated with RLAI discontinuation. These results indicate that PIRP can be effective in maintaining medication compliance, and that discontinuation of long-acting atypical antipsychotics might be predictive of the next relapse. However, these results need to be replicated in studies with larger samples.Effectiveness of a psychosocial intervention for relapse prevention in patients with schizophrenia receiving risperidone via long-acting injectionSang-Hyuk Lee, Tae Kyou Choi, ShinYoung Suh, Yong Woo Kim, Borah Kim, EunHee Lee, Ki Hwan Yook10.1016/j.psychres.2008.06.043Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Schizophrenia Spectrum195199http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109000250/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Depression is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Increased platelet activation has been proposed as a potential mechanism by which depression may lead to adverse cardiovascular outcomes. In this cross-sectional study, we measured platelet activation in 104 patients with stable CHD, including 58 with a current episode of major depression and 46 without past or current major depression. Participants were instructed not to take aspirin for 7 days prior to the study appointment. Platelet activation was measured by plasma concentrations of platelet factor 4 (PF4) and beta-thromboglobulin (β-TG), and by 24-h urinary concentrations of 11-dehydro-thromboxane B2 (TBXB2). We observed no differences in the mean levels of PF4, B-TG or TBXB2 in patients with and without major depression. Results were unchanged after adjustment for age, smoking, use of aspirin, and use of any psychotropic medication. We found no evidence of an association between major depression and platelet activation as measured by plasma concentrations of PF4 and β-TG, or urinary TBXB2 in 104 outpatients with stable CHD. These findings do not support a role for platelet activation in the association between depression and cardiovascular disease among patients with stable CHD.Depression and platelet activation in outpatients with stable coronary heart disease: Findings from the Heart and Soul StudyAnil Gehi, Dominique Musselman, Christian Otte, Erica Bruce Royster, Sadia Ali, Mary A. Whooley10.1016/j.psychres.2009.01.010Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Mood Disorders200204http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178108002710/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Neuropsychological research suggests that recognition memory (RM) and recall memory are impaired in patients with a major depressive disorder or a dysphoric mood state. This study examines the proposal that abnormalities in recollection (a form of recall) result from a breakdown in frontal strategic memory processes involved in encoding and retrieval, and executive functions linked to reality monitoring, planning, problem-solving, reasoning and decision-making. We investigated two predictions arising from this theory. Firstly, patients diagnosed with a major depressive disorder (MDD) will display a dissociation between (deficient) recollection and (preserved) familiarity. Secondly, if recollection impairments are indicative of a breakdown in prefrontal strategic memory processes which are dependent, at least in part, on executive processes, then an explicit correlational approach predicts that recollection will be positively associated with the severity of executive dysfunction in MDD patients. The remember/know paradigm was used to investigate RM for words and neutral faces in 16 MDD patients and 16 healthy volunteers, matched for age, gender and estimates of premorbid IQ. Measures of executive function included working memory, reasoning and decision-making. Applying the Dual Process Signal Detection interpretation of the remember/know data, the MDD group displayed significant impairments in RM and recollection rates for both verbal and neutral facial memoranda. In contrast, familiarity-aware rates were preserved. There was no evidence of executive dysfunction in the patient group, and little evidence that recollection rates correlated with executive function. Furthermore, a single process signal detection approach suggested that the MDD patients displayed a reduction in sensitivity for RM and remember rates but not know responses. The criteria for detecting studied from unstudied items, and remembering from knowing, were the same in both patient and healthy control groups. Taken together, these findings are consistent with the view that MDD is marked by a decline in RM, which is underpinned by an impairment in recollection rather than familiarity processes. The extent to which the recollection deficiencies arise from disruption of strategic memory and executive processes requires further investigation.Recollection deficiencies in patients with major depressive disorderJustine L. Drakeford, Nicola M.J. Edelstyn, Femi Oyebode, Shrikant Srivastava, William R. Calthorpe, Tirthankar Mukherjee10.1016/j.psychres.2008.08.010Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Mood Disorders205210http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178108004162/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Police work is one of the most stressful occupations. Previous research has indicated that work stress and trauma exposure may place individuals at heightened risk for the development of depression symptomatology. This prospective longitudinal study was designed to examine predictors of depression symptoms in police service. Participants comprised 119 healthy police recruits from an ongoing prospective study. They completed baseline measures of depression symptoms, childhood trauma exposure, neuroticism, and self-worth during academy training. Follow-up measures of depression symptoms, PTSD symptoms, critical incident exposure, negative life events, and routine work environment stress were assessed after 12 months of police service. Hierarchical linear regression analysis was conducted to examine predictors of current levels of depression symptoms, controlling for baseline depression symptoms and current PTSD symptoms. Greater childhood trauma exposure, lower self-worth during training, and greater perceived work stress in the first year of police service predicted greater depression symptoms at 12 months. Depression symptoms at 1 year of police service were partly independent from PTSD symptoms at 12 months. Greater childhood trauma exposure and lower self-worth during training may be important variables to screen as risk factors for duty-related depression. Strategies to reduce routine work environment stress have the potential to decrease duty-related depression in law enforcement.A prospective study of predictors of depression symptoms in policeZhen Wang, Sabra S. Inslicht, Thomas J. Metzler, Clare Henn-Haase, Shannon E. McCaslin, Huiqi Tong, Thomas C. Neylan, Charles R. Marmar10.1016/j.psychres.2008.11.010Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Mood Disorders211216http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178108003946/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Studies on the relationship between climate and unipolar depression rates have yielded mixed results, which could be attributed to the inclusion of heterogeneous clinical samples and the use of admission rather than onset dates. This study aimed to overcome these methodological issues. During an 8-year timeframe, onset rates of unipolar depressive episodes requiring hospitalization from individuals living up to 15 km from a selected meteorological station were stratified by clinical subtypes and modeled as Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) functions of orthogonal climatic factors obtained by Principal Components Analysis (PCA). For comparison purposes, onset rates stratified by demographic factors and by diagnosis of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and admission rates were also modeled. The main findings were a negative 1--month delayed relationship between onset rates of episodes with melancholic features and a climatic factor mainly composed of ambient temperature/sunlight, and a negative 1-month delayed relationship between onset rates of episodes with psychotic features and a climatic factor mainly composed of barometric pressure. Results of this study support a climatic–rather than seasonal–influence in specific subtypes of depression. If replicated, they may have nosological and therapeutic implications.Climatic relationships with specific clinical subtypes of depressionJoaquim Radua, Alberto Pertusa, Narcis Cardoner10.1016/j.psychres.2008.10.025Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Mood Disorders217220http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109001723/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Current symptom rating scales and diagnostic categories for bipolar disorder (BD) do not provide dimensional profiles of the types of behavior disturbed in this complex disorder. To overcome these limitations we identified the principal domains of behavioral symptomatology in bipolar individuals, including all mood states, and used a more comprehensive rating scale for BD: the Bipolar Inventory of Signs and Symptoms Scale (BISS). A total of 246 patients with BD (196 with BD type I, and 50 with BD type II) were interviewed using the BISS. Exploratory factor analysis was performed on the BISS results using the maximum likelihood factor extraction method, followed by oblique rotation of the extracted factor loadings. We determined the strength of relationships between factor scores using the Pearson correlation coefficient. The following five factors were extracted: mania, depression, irritability, anxiety and psychosis. Anxiety was significantly correlated with depression and irritability. The mania factor score was only weakly associated with the other four factors. The domains of the BISS capture both the historical categories of depression and mania, plus irritability, psychosis, and an additional principal domain, anxiety. Despite the common occurrence of anxiety in BD, it has not been identified in most prior factor analyses, in part due to limited coverage of anxiety symptoms in the source scales.Principal domains of behavioral psychopathology identified by the Bipolar Inventory of Signs and Symptoms Scale (BISS)Peter M. Thompson, Jodi M. Gonzalez, Vivek Singh, John D. Schoolfield, Martin M. Katz, Charles L. Bowden10.1016/j.psychres.2009.04.017Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Mood Disorders221226http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109001073/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Previous studies of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) in Chinese Americans describe internal reliability and factor structure. We report CES-D construct validity and diagnostic validity for major depression in a probability sample of 168 community-dwelling Chinese American women. Internal consistency was satisfactory (Cronbach's α=0.86). Good construct validity was indicated by significantly higher mean CES-D scores for respondents who reported lower social support, worse self-perceived general health, or stressful life events, including intimate partner violence. Cultural response bias was found, with positively-stated CES-D items (e.g. “I was happy”) producing higher depression scores in immigrants and subjects who preferred to speak Chinese. Diagnostic validity for major depression was assessed using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. A CES-D cut-off score of 16 had sensitivity of 100% (95% CI: 44% to 100%), specificity of 76% (95% CI: 69% to 82%), PPV of 7% (95% CI: 3% to 19%) and NPV of 100% (95% CI: 97% to 100%). Our findings suggest that the CES-D is useful for screening out non-depressed subjects in a first-stage assessment. However, it should be followed by a diagnostic tool in Chinese American women with scores above the cut-off in order to identify those with clinical depression.The CES-D in Chinese American women: Construct validity, diagnostic validity for major depression, and cultural response biasZhonghe Li, Madelyn Hsiao-Rei Hicks10.1016/j.psychres.2009.03.007Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Mood Disorders227232http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178108003971/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: The prevalence of night eating syndrome (NES) and binge eating disorder (BED) was assessed among overweight and obese, weight-loss-seeking individuals with serious mental illness (SMI). Sixty-eight consecutive overweight (BMI≥25 kg/m2) and obese (BMI≥30 kg/m2) individuals with SMI (mean age=43.9 years; mean BMI=37.2 kg/2; 67.6% Caucasian, 60.3% female) who were enrolled in a group behavioral weight loss treatment program were assessed at baseline for NES and BED with clinician-administered diagnostic interviews. Using conservative criteria, 25.0% met criteria for NES, 5.9% met criteria for BED, and only one participant met criteria for both NES and BED. This is the first study to find that obese individuals with SMI, compared with previously studied populations, are at significantly greater risk for NES, but are not at greater risk for BED. Stress, sleep, and medication use might account for the high prevalence of NES found in this population.The prevalence of night eating syndrome and binge eating disorder among overweight and obese individuals with serious mental illnessJennifer D. Lundgren, Melisa V. Rempfer, Catana E. Brown, Jeannine Goetz, Edna Hamera10.1016/j.psychres.2008.10.027Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Eating Disorders233236http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109001127/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Despite evidence from case series, the comorbidity of eating disorders with psychosis is less investigated than their comorbidity with anxiety and mood disorders. We investigated the occurrence of symptoms of psychosis in 112 female patients diagnosed with DSM-IV eating disorders (anorexia nervosa=61, bulimia nervosa=51) and 631 high school girls in the same health district as the patients: the items of the SCL-90R symptom dimensions “paranoid ideation” and “psychoticism” were specifically examined. No case of co-morbid schizophrenia was observed among patients. Compared with controls, the patients with anorexia nervosa were more likely to endorse the item “Never feeling close to another person”; the patients with bulimia nervosa were more likely to endorse the item “Feeling others are to blame for your troubles”. Both groups of patients were more likely than controls to endorse the item “Idea that something is wrong with your mind”. The students who were identified by the EAT and the BITE as being “at risk” for eating disorders were more likely to assign their body a causative role in their problems. Symptoms of psychosis can be observed in patients with eating disorders, but these could be better explained within the psychopathology of the disorders rather than by assuming a link with schizophrenia.Symptoms of psychosis in anorexia and bulimia nervosaPaola Miotto, Barbara Pollini, Antonietta Restaneo, Gerardo Favaretto, Davide Sisti, Marco B.L. Rocchi, Antonio Preti10.1016/j.psychres.2009.03.011Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Eating Disorders237243http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS016517810900211X/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Impaired recognition of facial affect has been reported in youths and adults with antisocial behavior. However, few of these studies have examined subjects with the psychiatric disorders associated with antisocial behavior, and there are virtually no data on females. Our goal was to determine if facial affect recognition was impaired in adolescent girls with conduct disorder (CD). Performance on the Ekman Pictures of Facial Affect (POFA) task was compared in 35 girls with CD (mean age of 17.9years±0.95; 38.9% African-American) and 30 girls who had no lifetime history of psychiatric disorder (mean age of 17.6years±0.77; 30% African-American). Forty-five slides representing the six emotions in the POFA were presented one at a time; stimulus duration was 5s. Multivariate analyses indicated that CD vs. control status was not significantly associated with the total number of correct answers nor the number of correct answers for any specific emotion. Effect sizes were all considered small. Within-CD analyses did not demonstrate a significant effect for aggressive antisocial behavior on facial affect recognition. Our findings suggest that girls with CD are not impaired in facial affect recognition. However, we did find that girls with a history of trauma/neglect made a greater number of errors in recognizing fearful faces. Explanations for these findings are discussed and implications for future research presented.Recognition of facial affect in girls with conduct disorderKathleen Pajer, Lisa Leininger, William Gardner10.1016/j.psychres.2009.06.003Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Childhood Disorders244251http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109003151/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a highly heritable developmental disorder characterized by symptoms of impulsivity, hyperactivity and/or inattention, and associated with structural and biochemical abnormalities in cortical and limbic structures innervated by dopamine, noradrenalin and serotonin. The enzyme monoamine oxidase, type B (MAO-B), is expressed in platelets, and metabolizes endogenous amines. Its activity has been proposed to represent a peripheral marker of various traits and forms of psychopathology. This study evaluated platelet MAO activity with a spectrofluorimetric method in 72 boys and 12 girls with predominantly hyperactive, predominantly inattentive, and combined subtype of ADHD (DSM-IV criteria), and in 64 control children. The results showed significantly lower platelet MAO activity in children with hyperactive, inattentive, and combined subtype of ADHD than in control children. There was no significant association between platelet MAO activity and gender or age. The limitation of the study was in the small sample of girls with ADHD (N=12), and in the determination of only one peripheral marker. In line with hypotheses of lower platelet MAO activity in different types of psychopathology, children with different subtypes of ADHD had significantly lower platelet MAO-B activity than control children.Platelet monoamine oxidase activity in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorderGordana Nedic, Nela Pivac, Dubravka Kocijan Hercigonja, Milivoj Jovancevic, Katarina Dodig Curkovic, Dorotea Muck-Seler10.1016/j.psychres.2009.08.013Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Childhood Disorders252255http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109000572/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Increasing emphasis has been placed on the role of socioemotional functioning in models of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The present study investigated whether OCD symptoms were associated with capacity for theory of mind (ToM) and basic affect recognition. Non-clinical volunteers (N=204) completed self report measures of OCD and general psychopathology, in addition to behavioral measures of ToM and affect recognition. The results indicated that higher OCD symptoms were associated with reduced ToM, as well as reduced accuracy decoding the specific emotion of disgust. Importantly, these relationships could not be attributed to other, more general features of psychopathology. The findings of the current study therefore further our understanding of how the processing and interpretation of social and emotional information is affected in the context of OCD symptomatology, and are discussed in relation to neuropsychological models of OCD.Socioemotional deficits associated with obsessive–compulsive symptomatologyJessica R. Grisham, Julie D. Henry, Alishia D. Williams, Phoebe E. Bailey10.1016/j.psychres.2009.01.028Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Anxiety and Personality Disorders256259http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178108001947/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Our objective was to explore the dose–response relationship in patients with panic disorder and social anxiety disorder comorbidity (DSM-IV). After 1 week of no-drug washout, 36 such patients were assigned to a double-blind controlled comparison of the effects of 30 mg and 60 mg of tranylcypromine, and were followed up for 12 weeks. The main instrument used to measure the number of panic attacks was the Sheehan Panic and Anticipatory Anxiety Scale. The primary outcome measure for social anxiety disorder symptoms was the mean change from baseline in the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS). After 12 weeks of treatment, panic attacks were reduced 69.6% from baseline in the 30-mg group (n=19) compared with a 74.8% reduction in the 60-mg group (n=17). Twelve patients (70.6%) of the higher dose group and 14 patients (68.4%) of the lower dose were completely free of panic attacks. There was no difference in efficacy between the tranylcypromine groups in the panic disorder symptoms. The 60-mg dose was more efficacious as measured by the LSAS scores, showing a significant difference in relation to the lower group. Mean change from baseline in LSAS total score (mean±SD) for 30-mg group was −17.9±14.7 and for the 60-mg group was −35.0±14.8. The social anxiety symptom scale showed a two-fold greater change with the 60-mg dose, and the 30-mg dose group could be considered the equivalent of a placebo control group. Tranylcypromine – 60 mg daily – was found effective in the treatment of panic disorder and social anxiety disorder comorbidity.Double-blind comparison of 30 and 60 mg tranylcypromine daily in patients with panic disorder comorbid with social anxiety disorderAntonio E. Nardi, Fabiana L. Lopes, Alexandre M. Valença, Rafael C. Freire, Isabella Nascimento, Andre B. Veras, Marco A. Mezzasalma, Valfrido L. de-Melo-Neto, Gastão L. Soares-Filho, Anna Lucia King, Leila O. Grivet, Arabella Rassi, Marcio Versiani10.1016/j.psychres.2008.06.025Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Anxiety and Personality Disorders260265http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109002893/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: We investigated whether sex differences in answering strategy occur in normal controls (C). Furthermore, it was tested whether these sex differences were subject to change over time, and whether they were associated with hormonal treatment at time points 2 and 3 in patients with Gender Identity Disorder (GID). Two subtests measuring arithmetic ability were used: arithmetic aptitude (AA) and arithmetic operations (AO). Both the controls (n=29) and GID patients (n=33) were tested at baseline (T1), three months (T2) and 12months (T3) after the start of hormonal treatment in the GID group. A repeated measures analysis of variance showed no differences between C males and females, for T1 and T2. At T3, C males guessed more than C females. At baseline, GID males and C males left an equal number of items unanswered. However, when being retested, C males left fewer items unanswered than GID males. No difference was found between C females and GID females at any time point. Our results suggest that healthy adult males become more confident when they are retested, and seem to adjust their answering strategy accordingly. Moreover, hormonal treatment of healthy adult GID patients born male is associated with a lack of adjustment in answering strategy.Sex-based differences in answering strategy and the influence of cross-sex hormonesMuirne Caitlin Shonagh Paap, Ira Ronit Haraldsen10.1016/j.psychres.2009.07.020Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Gender Identity Disorder266270http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS016517810900122X/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Weight gain is a common side effect of antipsychotics, contributing to poor treatment adherence, and previously linked to the −759C/T polymorphism near the serotonin receptor 2C gene. The effect of this polymorphism was analyzed in schizophrenia patients treated with iloperidone for up to 7 months. No association was detected with the modest weight changes observed in these patients.Absence of weight gain association with the HTR2C −759C/T polymorphism in patients with schizophrenia treated with iloperidoneAndrew Thompson, Christian Lavedan, Simona Volpi10.1016/j.psychres.2009.03.020Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Brief Reports271273http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109000778/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: This study was conducted to examine the relationship between whole blood serotonin level and behavioral symptoms in 78 subjects with autism. No significant associations were found between serotonin level and the primary behavioral outcome measures. However, a significant inverse relationship between serotonin level and self-injury was demonstrated.Relationship between whole blood serotonin and repetitive behaviors in autismAlexander Kolevzon, Jeffrey H. Newcorn, Lauren Kryzak, William Chaplin, Dryden Watner, Eric Hollander, Christopher J. Smith, Edwin H. Cook, Jeremy M. Silverman10.1016/j.psychres.2009.02.008Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Brief Reports274276http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178109000936/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: We sought to characterize the cognitive and affective empathic abilities of patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). While controls showed higher cognitive as compared with affective empathy scores, the BPD group demonstrated the opposite pattern. These results suggest that a dysfunctional pattern of empathic capacity may account for behavioral difficulties in BPD.Double dissociation between cognitive and affective empathy in borderline personality disorderHagai Harari, Simone G. Shamay-Tsoory, Milli Ravid, Yechiel Levkovitz10.1016/j.psychres.2009.03.002Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Brief Reports277279http://www.psy-journal.com/article/PIIS0165178108003764/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: This retrospective chart review of a clinical cohort of 19 refractory schizophrenic or schizoaffective patients treated with maintenance electroconvulsive therapy addresses the indications for this treatment, its efficacy, and its impact on daily functioning and hospitalizations. Maintenance electroconvulsive therapy combined with medication appears to be an efficient alternative to pharmacological treatment alone.Maintenance electroconvulsive therapy: An alternative treatment for refractory schizophrenia and schizoaffective disordersMaryse Lévy-Rueff, Raphaël Gourevitch, Henri Lôo, Jean-Pierre Olié, Isabelle Amado10.1016/j.psychres.2008.10.012Psychiatry Research 175, 3 (2010)2010-02-28Psychiatry Research2010-02-281753S0165-1781(09)X0016-8Brief Reports280283