How many segments are there in an orange: normative data for the new Cognitive Estimation Task in an Italian population.

The Cognitive Estimation Test (CET) is widely used by clinicians to assess frontal executive dysfunction. In the present work, the Italian standardization of a new version of the CET is provided. This version consists of two 9-item parallel forms (A and B) that were administered to two hundred and twenty-seven healthy Italian male and female participants aged between 19 and 91 years with 5-24 years of full-time education.

Assessing motivation and readiness to change for weight management and control: an in-depth evaluation of three sets of instruments.

It is highly recommended to promptly assess motivation and readiness to change (RTC) in individuals who wish to achieve significant lifestyle behavior changes in order to improve their health, overall quality of life, and well-being. In particular, motivation should be assessed for those who face the difficult task to maintain weight, which implies a double challenge: weight loss initially and its management subsequently. In fact, weight-control may be as problematic as smoking or drugs-taking cessation, since they all share the commonality of being highly refractory to change.

Managing chronic pathologies with a stepped mHealth-based approach in clinical psychology and medicine.

Chronic diseases and conditions typically require long-term monitoring and treatment protocols both in traditional settings and in out-patient frameworks. The economic burden of chronic conditions is a key challenge and new and mobile technologies could offer good solutions. mHealth could be considered an evolution of eHealth and could be defined as the practice of medicine and public health supported by mobile communication devices.

Enhancing behavioral change with motivational interviewing: a case study in a Cardiac Rehabilitation Unit.

Background: Psychological interventions in cardiac rehabilitation programs appear relevant in as much they significantly contribute to achieve the goals of rehabilitation, to reduce the risk of relapses and to improve patients' adherence to therapy. To this aim, motivational interviewing (MI) has shown promising results in improving motivation to change and individuals' confidence in their ability to do so.

Objective: The purpose of this article is to integrate theory with practice by describing a three-session case scenario.

Disentangling the relationship between cognitive estimation abilities and executive functions: a study on patients with Parkinson's disease.

The cognitive estimation test (CET) measures cognitive estimation abilities: it assesses the ability to apply reasoning strategies to answer questions that usually cannot lead to a clear and exact reply. Since it requires the activation of an intricate ensemble of cognitive functions, there is an ongoing debate in the literature regarding whether the CET represents a measurement of global cognitive abilities or a pure measure of executive functions. In the present study, CET together with a neuropsychological assessment focused on executive functions was administered in thirty patients with Parkinson's disease without signs of dementia.

Psychological effects of implantable cardioverter defibrillator shocks. A review of study methods.

Background: The implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) saves lives but clinical experience suggests that it may have detrimental effects on mental health. The ICD shock has been largely blamed as the main offender but empirical evidence is not consistent, perhaps because of methodological differences across studies.

Objective: To appraise methodologies of studies that assessed the psychological effects of ICD shock and explore associations between methods and results.

Development and initial validation of the Cardiovascular Disease Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (CVD-AAQ) in an Italian sample of cardiac patients.

Psychological inflexibility refers to the attempt to decrease internal distress even when doing so is inconsistent with life values, and has been identified as a potential barrier to making and maintaining health behavior changes that are consistent with a heart-healthy lifestyle. Disease- and behavior-specific measures of psychological inflexibility have been developed and utilized in treatment research. However, no specific measure has been created for patients with heart disease.

Tactile mental body parts representation in obesity.

Obese people׳s distortions in visually-based mental body-parts representations have been reported in previous studies, but other sensory modalities have largely been neglected. In the present study, we investigated possible differences in tactilely-based body-parts representation between an obese and a healthy-weight group; additionally we explore the possible relationship between the tactile- and the visually-based body representation. Participants were asked to estimate the distance between two tactile stimuli that were simultaneously administered on the arm or on the abdomen, in the absence of visual input.

Psychometric properties of the Italian Yale Food Addiction Scale in overweight and obese patients.

Aim: To assess the dimensionality and psychometric properties of an Italian version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) in a sample of obese/overweight patients attending low-energy diet therapy.

Methods: Participants were 300 overweight and obese patients who were admitted to a private medical center in Rome, Italy. Controls were 300 (231 women and 69 men) adults from the general population.

Obesity and outpatient rehabilitation using mobile technologies: the potential mHealth approach.

Obesity is currently an important public health problem of epidemic proportions (globesity). Inpatient rehabilitation interventions that aim at improving weight-loss, reducing obesity-related complications and changing dysfunctional behaviors, should ideally be carried out in a multidisciplinary context with a clinical team composed of psychologists, dieticians, psychiatrists, endocrinologists, nutritionists, physiotherapists, etc. Long-term outpatient multidisciplinary treatments are likely to constitute an essential aspect of rehabilitation.

Assessing depression in cardiac patients: what measures should be considered?

It is highly recommended to promptly assess depression in heart disease patients as it represents a crucial risk factor which may result in premature deaths following acute cardiac events and a more severe psychopathology, even in cases of subsequent nonfatal cardiac events. Patients and professionals often underestimate or misjudge depressive symptomatology as cardiac symptoms; hence, quick, reliable, and early mood changes assessments are warranted. Failing to detect depressive signals may have detrimental effects on these patients' wellbeing and full recovery.

Impact of fibromyalgia on functioning in obese patients undergoing comprehensive rehabilitation.

A possible link between fibromyalgia (FM) and obesity has been recently suggested but very scanty data on the prevalence of FM in obese populations are available. The aims of the present cross-sectional study were: 1) to estimate the prevalence of FM in a population of obese patients undergoing rehabilitation and 2) to investigate the effect of FM on obese patients' functional capacities. One hundred and thirty Italian obese (Body Mass Index, BMI ≥ 30) patients admitted to hospital for 1-month rehabilitation treatment took part in the study.

The ACTonHEART study: rationale and design of a randomized controlled clinical trial comparing a brief intervention based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to usual secondary prevention care of coronary heart disease.

Background: Modifiable risk factors, including life-style habits and psychological variables, have been increasingly demonstrated to have an important role in influencing morbidity and mortality in cardiovascular patients, and to account for approximately 90% of the population risk for cardiac events.Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has shown effectiveness in promoting healthy behaviors, and improving psychological well-being in patients with chronic physical conditions. Moreover, a first application of an acceptance-based program in cardiac patients has revealed high treatment satisfaction and initial evidences of effectiveness in increasing heart-healthy behaviour.

Concurrent comparison of the measurement properties of generic and disease-specific questionnaires in obese inpatients.

Background: The concurrent comparison of questionnaires assessing health-related quality of life in the same population is necessary for better appreciating their performance and to select the best instrument for a given purpose (e.g. clinical trials and observational studies).

Characteristics of anxiety and psychological well-being in chronic post-stroke patients.

Background And Purpose: Anxiety and depression are common psychological conditions in post-stroke patients. In the present study, their relation with perceived quality of life and psychophysical well-being was investigated.

Methods: In the present cross-sectional study, chronic post-stroke patients (n=81; average years from stroke=4 ± 4.

The Role of Psychogeriatrics in Healthy Living and Active Ageing.

A healthy and active life is a key issue for elderly citizens, above all when psychological complications such as depression and anxiety disorders, late delusion or loneliness can be observed. Moreover, medical pathologies in elderly patients often have a multi-factorial etiology and many psychopathological dimensions and psychosocial risk factors are underestimated. From the perspective of clinical health psychology, psychogeriatrics could play an important role in promoting active ageing and a healthy lifestyle in elderly persons through tailored clinical approaches based on specific research and advanced professional training in this area.

Can cardiac resynchronization therapy improve cognitive function? A systematic review.

Introduction: Cognitive impairment (CI) comprises a measurable deficit of different cognitive domains (memory, attention, problem solving, and motor speed), and has a high prevalence among congestive heart failure (CHF) patients. Only a few pilot studies have investigated the effects of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) on cognitive performance. The purpose of this systematic review is to outline and evaluate results of published studies that assess the impact of CRT on neuropsychological function in CHF.

Meditation training for people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and their caregivers.

Objectives: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disease that is clinically characterized by progressive weakness leading to death by respiratory insufficiency, usually within three years. Although the patient's intellect and personality usually remain unimpaired, as the disease progresses, the patient becomes immobile, develops wasting, and speech becomes impaired, often resulting in social isolation and a high degree of psychological suffering. Mindfulness meditation has proven to be effective technique for reducing distress in many chronic diseases.

Do life-events that obese inpatients think happened to them soon before their subjective problematic weight gain have an effect on their current psychopathology over and beyond BMI and binge eating?

The present study had two aims: (1) to investigate life-events that obese inpatients think happened to them during the 6 months preceding their subjective problematic weight gain and (2) to evaluate the associations of such life-events with psychopathology controlling for the effects of gender, age, BMI and binge eating in a large sample of obese inpatients referred to hospital for weight-loss treatment. The analysis used cross-sectional data on 2,900 obese adults from the hospital database. Psychopathology was assessed with the SCL-90 questionnaire, binge eating was evaluated with the Bulimic Investigatory Test, Edinburgh (BITE) and life-events were retrospectively assessed with a pre-defined self-report checklist asking patients to select the events that occurred to them in the 6 months preceding their problematic weight gain.