Exploring the impact of depression, anxiety, stress, academic engagement, and dropout intention on medical students' academic performance: A prospective study.

Background: Depression, anxiety, and stress (DAS) have been linked to poor academic outcomes. This study explores the relationships among DAS, academic engagement, dropout intentions, and academic performance - measured by Grade Point Average (GPA) - in medical students. It aims to understand how these factors relate to each other and predict academic performance.

Catatonia in Dementia: A Systematic Review of Case Reports and Case Series.

Background: Catatonia is a neuropsychiatric syndrome characterized by motor, behavioral, and autonomic abnormalities. It is often underdiagnosed in geriatric patients with dementia despite established diagnostic criteria and treatment options.

Objective: This systematic review investigates catatonia in the elderly, particularly those with dementia, to examine their clinical presentation, treatment response, and prognosis compared to elderly patients without dementia.

Correlates of burnout and dropout intentions in medical students: A cross-sectional study.

Background: Burnout is a pervasive issue among medical students, exhibiting a high prevalence that jeopardizes their academic success and may also predispose them to more severe affective disorders such as depression. This study aims to explore the complex relationships between psychological capital (PsyCap), general social support, educational satisfaction, and burnout, and how these factors collectively influence dropout intentions.

Methods: A non-probabilistic convenience sample was collected through an online survey from first- and second-year medical students at a Faculty of Medicine in Portugal.

Bipolar Camouflage: A Cerebellar Cognitive Affective Syndrome Case Report.

The cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome is a neuropsychiatric syndrome composed of affective (anxiety, depression, euphoria, and emotional lability) and cognitive symptoms (executive, attentional, and visuospatial deficits) that was described in the 1990s. We present the case of a 49-year-old woman with a history of an acute neurological episode at the age of 28, after which she reported a change in personality, brief and alternating periods of depression, hypomania, and mixed episodes, and cognitive impairment that had a major impact on her personal and occupational level of functioning. She was initially diagnosed with bipolar disorder, but a clinical, neuropsychological, and imaging re-evaluation prompted a diagnostic reconsideration in favor of a cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome.

Addictive Potential of Social Media: A Cross Sectional Study in Portugal.

Introduction: The use of social media is an extremely popular activity, with an average time spent of two and a half hours daily. The number of users continues to rise, with 4.65 billion around the world in 2022, approximately 58.

Clinical decision-making style preferences of European psychiatrists: Results from the Ambassadors survey in 38 countries.

Background: While shared clinical decision-making (SDM) is the preferred approach to decision-making in mental health care, its implementation in everyday clinical practice is still insufficient. The European Psychiatric Association undertook a study aiming to gather data on the clinical decision-making style preferences of psychiatrists working in Europe.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey involving a sample of 751 psychiatrists and psychiatry specialist trainees from 38 European countries in 2021, using the Clinical Decision-Making Style - Staff questionnaire and a set of questions regarding clinicians' expertise, training, and practice.

Communication skills in psychiatry for undergraduate students: A scoping review.

Communication skills are paramount in all areas of medicine but particularly in psychiatry due to the challenges posed by mental health patients and the essential role of communication from diagnosis to treatment. Despite the prevalence of psychiatric disorders in different medical specialties, particularly in primary care settings, communication skills in psychiatry and their training are not well studied and are often not included in the undergraduate medical curriculum. Our paper explores the relevance of teaching communication competencies in psychiatry for undergraduate medical students.

Long Time, No Sleep: Sleep in Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a major impact globally. While sleep problems have increased during the pandemic, their impact on specific populations is less well known. The objective of this study was to measure the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sleep and how it correlates with the feeling of isolation in individuals aged ≥ 50 years.

Intelligence quotient (IQ) as a predictor of epilepsy surgery outcome.

Introduction: About one-third of patients with epilepsy have a refractory form which is associated with important economic and psychosocial burden. Most of these patients also suffer from comorbidities. One of the most frequent is cognitive impairment.

Effective Connectivity Between the Orbitofrontal Cortex and the Precuneus Differentiates Major Psychiatric Disorders: Results from a Transdiagnostic Spectral DCM Study.

Translational psychiatry has been a hot topic in neurosciences research. The authors present a commentary on the relevant findings from a transdiagnostic study applicable to clinic practice. Additional discussion on conceptual and clinical insight into this current broad line of research is explored in the integration of multi-level paradigm in Psychiatry research.

[The Impact of COVID-19 in Older People in Portugal: Results from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement (SHARE)].

Introduction: In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 as a pandemic, and Portugal reported its initial cases. In this study, we aimed to determine the impact of COVID-19 on Portuguese individuals aged over 60 years old.

Material And Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE 8: COVID-19 Survey).

Psychedelics and Hallucinogens in Psychiatry: Finding New Pharmacological Targets.

Background: The therapeutic options for neurobehavioral disorders are still limited, and in many cases, they lack a satisfactory balance between efficacy and side effects.

Objectives: This work aims to review current evidence regarding the potential contribution of psychedelics and hallucinogens to the discovery of new drugs for treating different psychiatric disorders.

Discussion: Ayahuasca/N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), and psilocybin have evidence supporting their use in depression, and psilocybin and ayahuasca have also shown good results in treatment-resistant depression.

Precision Psychiatry: Machine Learning as a Tool to Find New Pharmacological Targets.

Objectives: The present work reviews current evidence regarding the contribution of machine learning to the discovery of new drug targets.

Methods: Scientific articles from PubMed, SCOPUS, EMBASE, and Web of Science Core Collection published until May 2021 were included in this review.

Results: The most significant areas of research are schizophrenia, depression and anxiety, Alzheimer´s disease, and substance use disorders.

Exploring the Hypothesis of a Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder Continuum: Biological, Genetic and Pharmacologic Data.

Present time nosology has its roots in Kraepelin's demarcation of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. However, accumulating evidence has shed light on several commonalities between the two disorders, and some authors have advocated for the consideration of a disease continuum. Here, we review previous genetic, biological and pharmacological findings that provide the basis for this conceptualization.

Predicting epilepsy surgery outcome in adult patients: May psychiatric diagnosis improve predictive models?

Objective: With this study, we aimed to assess the importance of including psychiatric disorders in a comprehensive prediction model for epilepsy surgery.

Methods: Ambispective observational study with a sample of adults who underwent resective surgery. Participants were evaluated, before and one year after surgery, to collect data regarding their neurological and psychiatric history.

Does Dysbiosis Increase the Risk of Developing Schizophrenia? - A Comprehensive Narrative Review.

Background: There is increasing evidence regarding the influence of the intestinal microbiota on the disease processes of various organs and systems. Dysbiosis, that is, alteration of the composition and function of the microbiota may constitute an important risk factor for the development of mental disorders, namely, schizophrenia.

Objective: This works aims to review current evidence regarding the pathological mechanisms leading from dysbiosis to schizophrenia and in particular the deficit syndrome in schizophrenia.

The role of acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase activity in the development of delirium in acute stroke.

Aim: Our study aimed to test whether plasma acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase enzyme activity were related to the presence and intensity of delirium in acute stroke patients.

Methods: We carried out a matched (age and gender) case-control study, in a sample of consecutive patients with an acute infarct or intracerebral haemorrhage (≤7 days). We assessed delirium using the DSM-5 criteria and the Delirium Rating Scale, and we measured plasma acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase enzyme activity after the patient's admission in the stroke unit and before hospital discharge.

May the right-side epileptogenic zone be a predictor of psychiatric comorbidity in people with refractory epilepsy?

The aim of this study was to determine the rate and types of lifetime psychiatric disorders, as well as their predictors, in a sample of people with refractory epilepsy. Demographic, neurological, psychiatric and neuropsychological data, from people with refractory epilepsy, were registered at the pre-surgical interview. Linear regression was used to determine predictors.

Are Patients With Alcohol-Related Seizures a Specific Subgroup?

Objective: Alcohol-related seizures are acute symptomatic seizures most frequently associated with alcohol withdrawal. However, little is known about the phenotypic characteristics of patients with alcohol-related seizures. This study evaluated the clinical features and personality traits of alcohol use disorder patients with alcohol-related seizures.

Psychiatric disorders as predictors of epilepsy surgery outcome.

Objectives: Our aim was to determine if a history of a mental disorder predicts a worst neurological outcome for patients undergoing epilepsy surgery.

Methods: We conducted an ambispective observational study including people with refractory epilepsy who underwent resective surgery. Demographic, psychiatric, and neurological data were collected, before and one year after surgery.

Personality patterns of people with medically refractory epilepsy - Does the epileptogenic zone matter?

Objectives: The aims of this study were to determine the rate of dysfunctional personality patterns before and after epilepsy surgery, their types, and the importance of the epileptogenic zone in a sample of people with refractory epilepsy.

Methods: We conducted an ambispective observational study, including refractory epilepsy surgery candidates. Demographic, psychiatric, and neurological data were recorded.