Dynamics of affect modulation in neurodevelopmental disorders (DynAMoND) - study design of a prospective cohort study.

Background: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neuro-developmental disorder that often persists into adulthood. Moreover, it is frequently accompanied by bipolar disorder (BD) as well as borderline personality disorder (BPD). It is unclear whether these disorders share underlying pathomechanisms, given that all three are characterized by alterations in affective states, either long or short-term.

Comparing forensic and non-forensic women with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: a European study.

Studies about violence by women with severe mental disorders are rare. The aim of this paper is to analyse the sample of women diagnosed with Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders (SSD) from the EU-VIORMED study who had offended violently and were admitted to forensic facilities (cases), and compare them to women with SSD who never exhibited violent behaviour (controls). Cases and controls matched for age and diagnosis were compared for sociodemographic, clinical, neuropsychological, and treatment-related characteristics using a standardised assessment.

The predictive validity and temporal characteristics of the HCR-20v3 for inpatient violence in forensic inpatient settings. An international study.

Aggression and violence are common day to day problems in psychiatric settings. However, the optimal means of assessing that risk remains unclear. In the context of that uncertainty many tools have evolved, among which the HCR-20 is one of the most globally accepted, though many questions remain about its performance, how and when it should be deployed and how it can be most effectively used.

RISK aversion in Italian forensic and non-forensic patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

Background: Goal-directed decision-making is a central component of the broader reward and motivation system, and requires the ability to dynamically integrate both positive and negative feedback from the environment in order to maximize rewards and minimize losses over time. Altered decision-making processes, in which individuals fail to consider the negative consequences of their decisions on both themselves and others, may play a role in driving antisocial behaviour.

Aim: The main study aim was to investigate possible differences in loss and risk aversion across matched patients, all with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder (SSD), but who varied according to whether they had a history of serious interpersonal violence or not, and a sample of healthy controls with no history of violence.

Difference between forensic patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders in Italy and other European countries: Results of the EU-VIORMED project.

Background: There has been a substantial change in the law on the provision of secure health services for offender-patients in Italy, a country currently with the lowest general psychiatry bed availability per head of the population in Europe, raising questions about possible differences in offender-patient admissions between European countries.

Aims: In this multicentre case-control study, our aim was to compare the socio-demographic, clinical and criminological characteristics of a sample of Italian forensic in-patients with schizophrenia or similar psychosis with patients in a similar diagnostic range in specialist in-patient services elsewhere in Europe.

Methods: Secure hospital unit in-patients with psychosis were recruited across five European countries (Italy, Austria, Germany, Poland and England).