Satisfaction and attitude of bipolar patients regarding electroconvulsive therapy: modified or unmodified.

Ministry of Health of Turkey issued a legislation to use only modified electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in 2005, and this study aimed to assess satisfaction and attitude of bipolar patients regarding modified and unmodified electroconvulsive therapy. A total of 100 patients (50 treated with modified electroconvulsive therapy (M-ECT) and 50 treated with unmodified ECT (UM-ECT) with a diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder (depressive or manic episode) were invited to participate in this study. Patients with euthymic mood were included.

Sexual dysfunction in obsessive compulsive disorder and panic disorder.

Background: Clinical research has provided conflicting evidence regarding sexual dysfunction in patients with OCD and PD. This study was undertaken to assess and compare certain parameters of sexual functioning in OCD and PD patients.

Subjects And Methods: The study population consisted of 80 patients between 20 and 60 years of age with a diagnosis of OCD or PD who were followed and treated at the anxiety outpatient unit of Bakirkoy Research and Training Hospital for Psychiatric and Neurological Disorders between 2005 and 2006.

Efficacy of high-dose aripiprazole for treatment-resistant schizoaffective disorder: a case report.

Aripiprazole is an atypical neuroleptic with a unique mechanism of action. According to the package insert, the maximum recommended dose for aripiprazole is 30 mg/day. In clinical practice, off-label prescribing of medications, including the use of doses that exceed the manufacturer's recommendations, is not uncommon.

A psychotic disorder related to use of herbal preparation: case report.

This article deals with the increasing frequency with which herbal preparations are being used in Turkey. The ingredients of herbal preparations are multiple and include a variety of herbal seed and leaf-related components. Thus, it is not possible to pinpoint a specific chemical culprit without careful analysis of each.

The comorbidity of anxiety disorders in bipolar I patients: prevalence and clinical correlates.

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of lifetime anxiety disorders in bipolar I patients in Sanliurfa, Turkey, and to assess the association between comorbidity and several demographic and clinical variables. Seventy bipolar I patients in remission were assessed by means of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV axis I Disorders-Clinician Version (SCID-I-CV), Anxiety Disorder Module in order to detect lifetime comorbid anxiety disorders. Nineteen (27.

Effects of an antistigma program on medical students' attitudes towards people with schizophrenia.

People with schizophrenia are amongst the most stigmatized of those with mental illnesses. The purpose of this study was to examine whether an antistigma program which consists of education, contact, and viewing a film that depicts an individual with schizophrenia, can change attitudes towards people with schizophrenia. The antistigma program was carried out with first-year medical students (n=25).

Comorbid personality disorders in subjects with bipolar I disorder.

Unlabelled: Objective. The purpose of this study was to present the frequencies of personality disorders in a sample of bipolar I patients and to investigate whether the presence of comorbid personality disorders affect the course of bipolar illness.

Methods: Seventy euthymic bipolar I patients were assessed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Personality Disorders (SCID II).

Quality of life instrument for Turkish people with skin diseases.

Background And Objective: To develop a new, short, self-administrated subjective quality of life (QOL) instrument for Turkish people with skin diseases.

Patients And Methods: The 11-item questionnaire of QOL instrument was developed from 200 consecutive dermatological patients' replies. The reliability and validity of the instrument was tested on data gathered from 278 patients with skin diseases attending a dermatology outpatient department and 49 normal subjects.

The effect of music on preoperative sedation and the bispectral index.

We assessed the effect of music on the level of sedation and the electroencephalograph bispectral index (BIS) during the preoperative period. Fifty-four ASA physical status I-II patients, scheduled for elective septo-rhinoplastic surgery, were included in the study. Subjects were assigned to receive either music (music group; n = 28) or no music (control group; n = 26) during the preoperative period.

The emergence of tics during escitalopram and sertraline treatment.

The selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have well-established antidepressant activity and have also demonstrated efficacy in a number of anxiety disorders, including panic disorder. The SSRIs, escitalopram and sertraline, are well-tolerated and movement disorders are rarely associated with their use. We present a case of the emergence of tics associated with escitalopram and sertraline treatment, which might be due to an imbalance in the dopaminergic neurotransmitter system.

Condolence houses in Sanliurfa: fading away of a tradition and a creative attempt to preserve it.

This article reports the results of qualitative research conducted to investigate the change in the traditional manner of giving and accepting condolences in Sanliurfa, a city with a unique sociocultural structure in the southeastern part of Turkey. Our methodology was based on direct observation of behavior and detailed, open-ended interviews with participants. This article aims to investigate the reasons for moving the condolence tradition from family homes to specially built condolence houses a decade ago and discusses the functional significance of the ceremonial events in giving and accepting condolences.

Association between Ala-9Val polymorphism of Mn-SOD gene and schizophrenia.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been suggested to play an important role in physiopathology of schizophrenia. The major intracellular antioxidant enzymes, copper-zinc superoxide dismutase in the cytoplasm and manganese superoxide dismutase (Mn-SOD) in the mitochondria, rapidly and specifically reduce superoxide radicals to hydrogen peroxide. Polymorphisms in the genes encoding antioxidant enzymes should therefore result in predisposition to schizophrenia.

The relationship between potency of oxidative stress and severity of depression.

Background: Oxidative stress is one of the suggested mechanisms in major depression.

Objective: To determine the oxidative and antioxidative status of plasma of patients with major depression and to investigate whether there is a relationship between the potency of oxidative stress and the severity of depression.

Methods: To determine the antioxidative status of plasma, total and individual antioxidant levels which are total antioxidant potential (TAOP), total protein, albumin, uric acid, vitamin C and total bilirubin were measured.

A case of factitious disorder involving menstrual blood smeared on the face.

This article presents a case of factitious disorder in which a female smeared menstrual blood on her face. The patient was admitted to our otolaryngology clinic complaining of bleeding from the mouth, nose, ears and eyes. This event reportedly occurred three to four times on a daily basis.

Plasma manganese, selenium, zinc, copper, and iron concentrations in patients with schizophrenia.

A number of essential trace elements play a major role in various metabolic pathways. Selenium (Se), manganese (Mn), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), and iron (Fe) are essential trace elements that have been studied in many diseases, including autoimmune, neurological, and psychiatric disorders. However, the findings of previous research on the status of trace elements in patients with schizophrenia have been controversial.

The role of the arginine-nitric oxide pathway in the pathogenesis of bipolar affective disorder.

There is a reciprocal regulation of arginase and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in L-arginine-metabolizing pathways. Nitric oxide (NO) may be involved in some psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia, depression and bipolar affective disorder (BPAD). To our knowledge, there is no study in the literature in which the role of arginase, an important part of the arginine regulatory system affecting NOS activity, was investigated in BPAD.

Is the arginine-nitric oxide pathway involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia?

The reciprocal regulation of arginase and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in L-arginine-metabolizing pathways has been demonstrated. There are various evidences of the role of the nitric oxide (NO) in several neuropsychiatric disorders including schizophrenia. However, there is no study which has investigated the role of arginase as an important part of the arginine regulatory system affecting NOS activity in schizophrenia.

Changes in nitric oxide levels and antioxidant enzyme activities may have a role in the pathophysiological mechanisms involved in autism.

Background: There is evidence that oxygen free radicals play an important role in the pathophysiology of many neuropsychiatric disorders. Although it has not been investigated yet, several recent studies proposed that nitric oxide (NO) and other parameters related to oxidative stress may have a pathophysiological role in autism.

Methods: We assessed the changes in superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activities and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) levels in plasma as well as NO levels in red blood cells (RBC) in patients with autism (n=27) compared to age- and sex-matched normal controls (n=30).

Pathophysiological role of nitric oxide and adrenomedullin in autism.

Several studies indicate that nitric oxide (NO) is involved in the aetiopathogenesis of many neuropsychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, Alzheimer's disease, Hungtington disease and stroke. Although it has not been investigated yet, several recent studies proposed that NO may have a pathophysiological role in autism. Adrenomedullin (AM), a recently discovered 52-amino acid peptide hormone, induces vasorelaxation by activating adenylate cyclase and also by stimulating NO release.