Publications by authors named "Claudio Petrella"

The aim of this study is to produce preliminary data about the validation of the "Naples-Questionnaire of Distress at Work" (nQ.DW). This inventory is a new assessment tool in order to evaluate the distress perceived in the working environment by means of the differentiation of the conditions linked to the mobbing from which related to organizational disfunction.

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This review will address the current understanding of the relationship between hyperprolactinemia and antipsychotic drugs. Hyperprolactinemia is a frequent but often neglected side effect of typical, but also of many atypical antipsychotics. Release of PRL from lactotrope cells is influenced by several factors, such as stress, physical and sexual activity and food assumption.

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Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate (1) the frequency of obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) in patients with schizophrenia, (2) the impact of OCS on clinical features of schizophrenia, and (3) the association between type of antipsychotic treatment and presence of OCS.

Methods: OCS were evaluated using the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) in 70 patients with schizophrenia. The patients were then divided into two subgroups: those with at least a moderate level of OCS and those with mild or absent OCS.

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Several candidate genes have been associated with antipsychotic-induced body weight (BW) gain. Because the endocannabinoid system is deeply involved in BW regulation, endocannabinoid genes may have a role in the antipsychotic-induced weight gain. Therefore, we investigated the 1359 G/A (rs1049353) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of the cannabinoid receptor 1 (CNR1) gene, which codes the endocannabinoid CB1 receptor, and the complementary DNA (cDNA) 385C/A (rs324420) SNP of the FAAH gene, which codes the endocannabinoid degrading enzyme, for their role in BW changes induced by antipsychotic drugs.

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Background: In the last few years the international literature has shown an increasing attention for the work as life-event stressor, for its organizational characteristics as well as for job insecurity and interpersonal conflicts.

Methods: We have studied 707 subjects who approached the Work Psychopathology Medical Centre of Naples to evaluate the DSM IV diagnoses and the degree of bullying at the workplace according to Leymann's definition. Two groups, with high and with low severity of bullying, were compared, mainly in relation to gender differences.

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Bulimia Nervosa (BN) and Binge Eating Disorder (BED) are some of the most common eating disorders (ED) in industrialized societies, characterized by uncontrolled binge eating and self-induced purging or other compensatory behaviours aiming to prevent body weight gain. It has been suggested that reduced serotonergic and noradrenergig tone triggers some of the cognitive and mood disturbances associated with ED. In fact in the active phase of ED the concentration of serotonin and noradrenaline in cerebral fluid is reduced.

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