Efficacy and Safety of Lurasidone vs. Quetiapine XR in Acutely Psychotic Patients With Schizophrenia in Korea: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Active-Controlled Trial.

Objective: This study was performed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of lurasidone (160 mg/day) compared to quetiapine XR (QXR; 600 mg/day) in the treatment of acutely psychotic patients with schizophrenia.

Methods: Patients were randomly assigned to 6 weeks of double-blind treatment with lurasidone 160 mg/day (n=105) or QXR 600 mg/day (n=105). Primary efficacy measure was the change from baseline to week 6 in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score and Clinical Global Impressions severity (CGI-S) score.

Smartphone Addiction Proneness Is Associated With Subjective-Objective Sleep Discrepancy in Patients With Insomnia Disorder.

Objective: Subjective reports of patients with insomnia often show a discrepancy with their objective assessments of sleep. We aimed to assess subjective-objective sleep discrepancy in subjects with insomnia disorder as well as the psychological factors associated with the discrepancy.

Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of the baseline data of a randomized controlled study on 110 adults aged 18 years to 59 years with insomnia disorder.

Can we recommend mirtazapine and bupropion for patients at risk for bleeding?: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Many studies have reported that selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) are associated with an increased risk of bleeding. Mirtazapine and bupropion, which commonly lack serotonin reuptake inhibition, have been recommended as alternatives for patients who are at risk for bleeding. However, the evidence for these recommendations is insufficient.

Incidence and Course of Depression in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease.

Objective: Depressive symptoms are common in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and they might influence the course and prognosis of AD. Depression could appear anytime in the course of the disease, and could either last considerably long or disappear easily. This study is intended to investigate the occurrence of depression in the course of AD and the risk factors of incidence.

Decreased medial frontal gyrus in patients with adjustment disorder.

Backgrounds: Adjustment disorder is a frequent mental illness that occurs under various stressful situations. Whereas adjustment disorder has distinct clinical manifestations and diagnostic entity, few studies have investigated its underlying neural substrate. This study aimed to identify brain structural abnormalities among patients with adjustment disorder.

Association between Abacus Training and Improvement in Response Inhibition: A Case-control Study.

Objective: The abacus, first used in Asian countries more than 800 years ago, enables efficient arithmetic calculation via visuospatial configuration. We investigated whether abacus-trained children performed better on cognitive tasks and demonstrated higher levels of arithmetic abilities compared to those without such training.

Methods: We recruited 75 elementary school children (43 abacus-trained and 32 not so trained).

The effectiveness of cross-tapering switching to ziprasidone in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder.

Objective: Switching antipsychotics is one useful therapeutic option when the treatment of schizophrenia encounters suboptimal efficacy and intolerability issues. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and tolerability of cross-tapering switching to ziprasidone from other antipsychotics.

Methods: A total of 67 patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder were recruited in this 12-week, multicenter, non-comparative, open-label trial.

Mediating effects of cognitive effort and depression on intelligence, memory, and executive functions in individuals with mild traumatic brain injury.

Objective: Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) is frequently associated with psychiatric symptoms and cognitive dysfunction, as well as with the receipt of workers' compensation, as many mTBIs occur due to work-related accidents. We hypothesized that depression and insufficient cognitive effort mediate the relationship between sociodemographic variables and cognitive dysfunction in mTBI.

Methods: A retrospective chart review study was conducted using 115 records of patients with mTBI.

Efficacy of adjunctive celecoxib treatment for patients with major depressive disorder: a meta-analysis.

Background: Numerous studies have reported that inflammation is closely associated with depression, and adjunctive non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) treatment has been suggested as a novel therapeutic approach for depression.

Methods: We searched electronic databases including Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. We only included randomized controlled trials comparing adjunctive NSAIDs with placebos for treating depressive episodes.

High insulin-like growth factor-1 in patients with bipolar I disorder: a trait marker?

Objectives: Neurotrophic factors exert substantial effects on the central nervous system. The present study investigates the roles of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), β-nerve growth factor (β-NGF), and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in bipolar disorder.

Methods: Baseline levels of culture-stimulated IGF-1, β-NGF, and BDNF were compared in 116 patients with bipolar I disorder and 123 healthy controls.

Effectiveness of paliperidone extended-release for patients with schizophrenia: focus on subjective improvement.

Objective: This study assessed whether the subjective experience of patients with schizophrenia improved after switching from an oral antipsychotic to flexibly-dosed paliperidone extended-release.

Methods: We conducted a 24-week, multicenter, non-comparative, open-label trial. A total of 387 patients with schizophrenia participated the study.

Temperament and character of young male conscripts with adjustment disorder: a case-control study.

Personality is an important clinical factor for successful adjustment in stressful situations. The aim of this study was to examine possible differences in temperament and character dimensions between patients with adjustment disorder with depressed mood and healthy controls. Among the young male conscripts, 86 subjects with adjustment disorder with depressed mood and 86 healthy controls were included.

The role of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the neuroinflammation and neurogenesis of schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness with chronic symptoms and significant impairment in psychosocial functioning. Although novel antipsychotics have been developed, the negative and cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia are still unresponsive to pharmacotherapy. The high level of social impairment and a chronic deteriorating course suggest that schizophrenia likely has neurodegenerative characteristics.

Relationship between inflammation and metabolic syndrome following treatment with paliperidone for schizophrenia.

Objective: Metabolic syndrome and antipsychotic medications are associated with inflammation. This study investigated the relationship between inflammation and metabolic syndrome in patients with schizophrenia. It also examined the effects of paliperidone extended release (ER) treatment on metabolic parameters.

Developing Korean Academy of Medical Sciences Guideline for rating the impairment in mental and behavioral disorders; a comparative study of KNPA's new guidelines and AMA's 6th Guides.

Quantifying and rating the impairments due to mental and behavior disorders are difficult for their own characteristics. Korean Academy of Medical Sciences (KAMS) is developing guidelines of rating impairment in mental and behavioral disorders based on Korean Neuropsychiatric Association (KNPA)'s new guidelines. We compared the new KNPA's guidelines and the American Medical Association (AMA)'s 6th Guides in assessing impairment due to mental and behavioral disorders to develop new guidelines of KAMS.

Validity and reliability of the Korean version of the Mood Disorder Questionnaire.

Background: This study aimed to elucidate the validity and reliability of the Korean version of the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (K-MDQ), which is a screening instrument developed for bipolar disorders.

Methods: This study translated the MDQ into Korean to produce the K-MDQ. The K-MDQ was applied to 126 outpatients with bipolar disorder clinically diagnosed by Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition and 112 controls without a psychiatric history.