Investigation of white matter abnormalities in first episode psychosis patients with persistent negative symptoms.

Aberrant white matter structures in fronto-temporal regions have previously been identified in patients with schizophrenia. However, scant research has focused on white matter integrity in patients presenting with a first episode of psychosis (FEP) with persistent negative symptoms (PNS). This study aimed to explore microstructure in the neurocircuitry proposed to be involved in PNS, by using a region-of-interest approach.

Cortical thinning in temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) in non-affective first-episode of psychosis patients with persistent negative symptoms.

Background: Negative symptoms represent an unmet therapeutic need in many patients with schizophrenia. In an extension to our previous voxel-based morphometry findings, we employed a more specific, vertex-based approach to explore cortical thinning in relation to persistent negative symptoms (PNS) in non-affective first-episode of psychosis (FEP) patients to advance our understanding of the pathophysiology of primary negative symptoms.

Methods: This study included 62 non-affective FEP patients and 60 non-clinical controls; 16 patients were identified with PNS (i.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) for treating major depression and schizophrenia: a systematic review of recent meta-analyses.

Background: In recent years, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has been developed for the treatment of major depression (MD) and schizophrenia. Although rTMS has shown some promising findings, the lack of standardization in the methodology employed has resulted in discordant findings.

Objectives: The objective of this systematic review was to summarize several meta-analytical studies exploring the efficacy of rTMS in either MD or schizophrenia in order to examine the methodologies that increase the efficacy of rTMS and to provide some recommendations for future studies.

Impairment in verbal memory observed in first episode psychosis patients with persistent negative symptoms.

Negative symptoms are present early on during the first episode of psychosis (FEP). The severity of these symptoms has been linked to cognitive deficits, including memory; however, its relationship with persistent negative symptoms (PNS) remains unclear. Thus, the goals of the current paper were to explore memory profiles in FEP patients identified as having PNS and to delineate this relationship in PNS over a 1-year period.

Identifying persistent negative symptoms in first episode psychosis.

Background: Although persistent negative symptoms (PNS) are known to contribute significantly to poor functional outcome, they remain poorly understood. We examined the heuristic value of various PNS definitions and their respective prevalence in patients with first episode psychosis (FEP). We also contrasted those definitions to the Proxy for the Deficit Syndrome (PDS) to identify deficit syndrome (DS) in the same FEP cohort.

Neurocognition and neuroimaging of persistent negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

Negative symptoms have been a conundrum to researchers and clinicians alike since having first been identified by Bleuler and Kraepelin. The term 'negative symptoms' has been scrutinized with regards to what it encompasses. Negative symptomatology has been categorized into distinct subdomains, including primary symptoms, secondary symptoms, deficit syndrome and, more recently, persistent negative symptoms (PNS).

Guided motor imagery in healthy adults and stroke: does strategy matter?

Background: Motor imagery (MI) enhances physical performance and skill acquisition in healthy and neurorehabilitation populations, yet little is known about the use of strategies to guide MI.

Objectives: To examine the relative effectiveness of visual, auditory, and combined (visual + auditory) cueing of an imagined finger abduction task on corticomotor excitability.

Methods: A total of 15 young (20-35 years) and 15 older people (over 55 years) and 10 people with chronic stroke, who could make voluntary movements of selected muscles, participated.

Comparison of walking parameters and cardiorespiratory changes during the 6-minute walk test in healthy sexagenarians and septuagenarians.

Background: The 6-minute walk test (6-MWT) is commonly used in research, with a focus on walking distance parameters rather than the physiological parameters. Even though it has been reported that the distance walked during the 6-MWT decreases with age, the adaptation of cardiorespiratory functions in healthy older adults remains to be studied.

Objectives: The primary objective of this study was to compare the changes in walking distance and cardiorespiratory parameters during the 6-MWT in healthy sexagenarians and septuagenarians.