Visual perspective taking neural processing in forensic cases with high density EEG.

This EEG study aims at dissecting the differences in the activation of neural generators between borderline personality disorder patients with court-ordered measures (BDL-COM) and healthy controls in visual perspective taking. We focused on the distinction between mentalizing (Avatar) and non-mentalizing (Arrow) stimuli as well as self versus other-perspective in the dot perspective task (dPT) in a sample of 15 BDL-COM cases and 54 controls, all of male gender. BDL-COM patients showed a late and diffuse right hemisphere involvement of neural generators contrasting with the occipitofrontal topography observed in controls.

Mentalizing and self-other distinction in visual perspective taking: the analysis of temporal neural processing using high-density EEG.

This high density EEG report dissects the neural processing in the visual perspective taking using four experimental comparisons (Arrow, Avatar and Self, Other). Early activation differences occurred between the Avatar and the Arrow condition in primary visual pathways concomitantly with alpha and beta phase locked responses predominant in the Avatar condition. In later time points, brain activation was stronger for the Avatar condition in paracentral lobule of frontal lobe.

Seeing in my way or your way: impact of intelligence, attention, and empathy on brain reactivity.

Previous studies showed that neurotypical adults are able to engage in unconscious analyses of others' mental states in the context of automatic perspective taking and experience systematic difficulties when judging the conflicts between their own (Self) and another's (Other) perspective. Several functional MRI (fMRI) studies reported widespread activation of mentalizing, salience, and executive networks when adopting the Other compared to Self perspective. This study aims to explore whether cognitive and emotional parameters impact on brain reactivity in dot perspective task (dPT).

Forensic mental health professionals' perceptions of their dual loyalty conflict: findings from a qualitative study.

Background: Mental health professionals (MHP) working in court-mandated treatment settings face ethical dilemmas due to their dual role in assuring their patient's well-being while guaranteeing the security of the population. Clear practical guidelines to support these MHPs' decision-making are lacking, amongst others, due to the ethical conflicts within this field. This qualitative interview study contributes to the much-needed empirical research on how MHPs resolve these ethical conflicts in daily clinical practice.

[From running amok to mass shootings: a psychopathological perspective].

The expression « To run amok » describes bouts of murderous madness. This clinical entity was originally described in the Malay Peninsula. Associated with a form of exoticism, literary and historical descriptions are available.

Forensic psychiatry in Rwanda.

Forensic psychiatry has often been neglected in nonwestern countries, including the African continent. Our aim was to assess the practices and needs for improvement in the field of forensic psychiatry in Rwanda. During a one-week visit conducted in October 2017, we interviewed key-informants working at decisional levels in the domains of health, justice and security.

Schizophrenia and Criminal Responsibility: A Systematic Review.

The significant progress of psychiatry in the 20th century provided a sophisticated theoretical framework to analyze the complex relationships between crime and mental illness. Schizophrenia has been traditionally associated with severe cognitive and affective deficits that heavily influence empathy, judgment capacities, but also control of impulsiveness. Although there is an association between psychotic disorders and absence or decrease of legal responsibility, their relationship is also determined by sociodemographic, developmental, and clinical factors.

What are the barriers to access to mental healthcare and the primary needs of asylum seekers? A survey of mental health caregivers and primary care workers.

Background: We aimed to assess the opinion of primary care workers, social workers, translators and mental health caregivers who work with asylum seekers about the latter's unmet needs and barriers to access to mental healthcare.

Methods: We used a Likert scale to assess the opinion of 135 primary care workers (general practitioners, nurses, social workers and translators) and mental health caregivers about the proportion of asylum seekers with psychiatric disorders, their priority needs and their main barriers to mental health services.

Results: Insufficient access to adequate financial resources, poor housing and security conditions, access to employment, professional training and legal aid were considered as priority needs, as were access to dental and mental healthcare.

[From perceived dangerousness to the dangerous individual: clinical challenges and vision of society].

It is a complex task to identify individuals who are persistently dangerous for others because of a mental disorder. The results of unstructured clinical interviews are poor. Risk assessment instruments statistically improve the prediction of violence.

Long-term mental health outcome in post-conflict settings: Similarities and differences between Kosovo and Rwanda.

Background: Few studies investigated the long-term mental health outcome in culturally different post-conflict settings. This study considers two surveys conducted in Kosovo 8 years after the Balkans war and in Rwanda 14 years after the genocide.

Methods: All participants (n = 864 in Kosovo; n = 962 in Rwanda) were interviewed using the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive episode (MDE) sections of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) and the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36).

Covariance and specificity in adolescent schizotypal and borderline trait expression.

Aims: The first aim of the present study is to assess the overlap between borderline and schizotypal traits during adolescence. The second objective is to examine whether some psychological factors (i.e.

Spirituality and religion in outpatients with schizophrenia: a multi-site comparative study of Switzerland, Canada, and the United States.

Objective: To assess the importance of spirituality and religious coping among outpatients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder living in three countries.

Method: A total of 276 outpatients (92 from Geneva, Switzerland, 121 from Trois-Rivières, Canada, and 63 from Durham, North Carolina), aged 18-65, were administered a semi-structured interview on the role of spirituality and religiousness in their lives and to cope with their illness.

Results: Religion is important for outpatients in each of the three country sites, and religious involvement is higher than in the general population.

Medical and legal professionals' attitudes towards confidentiality and disclosure of clinical information in forensic settings: a survey using case vignettes.

Objective: When potentially dangerous patients reveal criminal fantasies to their therapists, the latter must decide whether this information has to be transmitted to a third person in order to protect potential victims. We were interested in how medical and legal professionals handle such situations in the context of prison medicine and forensic evaluations. We aimed to explore the motives behind their actions and to compare these professional groups.

Hunger strike among detainees: guidance for good medical practice.

Hunger strike is a regularly reported problem in prison. Although clinical situations are rarely severe, hospitalisation is often considered. In consequence, it is not only physicians working in prisons, but also hospital medical teams who face challenges related to hunger strike, involving somatic, psychological, legal and human rights aspects.

Implementation and impact of anti-smoking interventions in three prisons in the absence of appropriate legislation.

Objective: To assess the acceptability and impact of anti-smoking policies in three prisons in Switzerland.

Methods: A before-after intervention study in A) an open prison for sentenced prisoners, B) a closed prison for sentenced prisoners, and C) a prison for pretrial detainees. Prisoners and staff were surveyed before (2009, n=417) and after (2010-2011, n=228) the interventions.

Mental health of young offenders in Switzerland: Recognizing psychiatric symptoms during detention.

We reviewed the medical records of the 118 adolescent detainees which had at least one consultation by a psychiatrist at the prison health facility during 2007. General practitioners used the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC-2) for recording health problems. Psychiatrists used the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) for making psychiatric diagnoses.

Impact of psychiatrists' qualifications on the rate of compulsory admissions.

Despite efforts to reduce coercion in psychiatry, involuntary hospitalizations remain frequent, representing more than half of all admissions in some European regions. Since October 2006, only certified psychiatrists are authorized to require a compulsory admission to our facility, while before all physicians were, including residents. The aim of the present study is to assess the impact of this change of procedure on the proportion compulsory admissions.

Mental and physical health in Rwanda 14 years after the genocide.

Purpose: To examine the socio-demographic determinants of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its association with major depressive episode and self-perceived physical and mental health in a large random sample of the Rwandan population 14 years after the 1994 genocide.

Methods: Using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview and Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form (SF-36) translated in Kinyarwanda, we interviewed 1,000 adult residents from the five provinces of Rwanda. Socio-demographic data and specific somatic symptoms were also recorded.

[Ethical issues in psychiatry under coercion].

Psychiatry is now subject to two apparently contradictory movements. On the one hand, the need to respect the autonomy and rights of patients is reinforced and coercive measures are strictly defined and limited. On the other hand, security concerns in our society leads to prosecution of psychiatric disorders, especially when accompanied by behavioral problems or criminal acts.

Use of healthcare services 8 years after the war in Kosovo: role of post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.

Background: The aim of the present study was to examine the use of health-care services and medication, as well as health risk behaviours such as smoking, in relation with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive episode (MDE) in post-war Kosovo.

Methods: A sample of 864 adults was interviewed in 2007 of which 551 took part in a 2001 survey. They were assessed using the PTSD and MDE sections of the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) and the Medical Outcomes Study 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36).

Health problems among detainees in Switzerland: a study using the ICPC-2 classification.

Background: Little is known about the health status of prisoners in Switzerland. The aim of this study was to provide a detailed description of the health problems presented by detainees in Switzerland's largest remand prison.

Methods: In this retrospective cross-sectional study we reviewed the health records of all detainees leaving Switzerland's largest remand prison in 2007.

Religion and mental health during incarceration: a systematic literature review.

Religion and spirituality (RS) as a coping resource for facing stressful life events is encountered with increasing frequency in the medical literature. RS is associated with more favourable outcomes among people suffering from mental disorders. Detention is a stressful situation and the prevalence of mental disorders in places of detention is increased compared with the community.

Psychiatric symptoms, psychological distress and somatic comorbidity among remand prisoners in Switzerland.

Objective: The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of psychiatric symptoms and complaints among remand prisoners in Switzerland and to analyze the relationships between psychiatric symptoms, physical health and substance abuse problems in this population.

Method: The medical files of all detainees attending the prison health service in 2007 were reviewed. Identified health problems were coded using the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC-2).