Improvements of Frontotemporal Cerebral Blood Flow and Cognitive Functioning in Patients With First Episode of Schizophrenia Treated With Long-Acting Aripiprazole.

Purpose/background: Frontal and temporal cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes are the most common impairments of CBF described in patients with schizophrenia. Those impairments have also been associated with cognitive deficits, a hallmark of schizophrenia. In light of that fact, treatment interventions should target cognitive deficits to prevent chronic disability.

Long acting aripiprazole influences cognitive functions in recent onset schizophrenia.

Rationale: Beneficial effects of aripiprazole on cognition in schizophrenia have been previously reported, but not in recent onset schizophrenia. Cognitive impairments have also been associated with catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT), methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR), and serotonin transporter (SERT) gene polymorphisms which were earlier implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.

Objectives: This study examined the short-term influence of aripiprazole long-acting injectable (LAI) as well as of COMT, MTHFR, and SERT gene polymorphisms and their interactions on clinical features and cognitive functions in inpatients with recent onset schizophrenia.

Nonverbal Memory Capacity in Persons with Epilepsy Is Associated with Depression Rather than Anxiety.

Epilepsy is characterized by repeated epileptic seizures, which are manifested in various ways and depend on the location and size of foci in the brain. Long-term seizures with secondary generalization can cause memory problems. Numerous studies demonstrate the connection of memory damage and lateralization in medial temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE).

The Relationship between Cognitive and Emotional Intelligence and High School Academic Achievement.

The study investigated the relationship between intelligence, emotional intelligence and academic achievement in high school. The study was conducted within the standardization of two instruments for Croatian samples. A total of 369 high school students from the Republic of Croatia participated in the study.