Quality of life of family primary caregivers of individuals with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia in south of Brazil.

Background: The process of deinstitutionalization of individuals with mental disorders (MD) brought greater family responsibility in terms of patient care.

Aims: Evaluate the Quality of Life (QoL) and its associated factors of primary caregivers of bipolar and schizophrenic subjects.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from 2012 to 2015 with 125 caregivers at an outpatient service of a teaching hospital in the South of Brazil.

Hypothesis: Compulsive hoarding as an atavism.

In this hypothesis paper, we propose that hoarding disorder may be an ancestral mammalian behavior, possibly hard-wired but dormant in present-day humans, that can be activated by traumatic experiences. To support this claim, we describe hoarding in ancestral mammals and provide examples of recurrence of traits, or atavisms, in humans and other mammals, highlighting its implications for neuropsychiatric diseases. We highlight the potential of using shrews as animal models for hoarding behavior and, considering the current knowledge on the molecular underpinnings of the disorder, we also point to limitations of the proposed connection.

Isosorbide and nifedipine for Chagas' megaesophagus: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Chagas disease is a neglected tropical disease. About 6 to 8 million people are chronically infected and 10% to 15% develop irreversible gastrointestinal disorders, including megaesophagus. Treatment focuses on improving symptoms, and isosorbide and nifedipine may be used for this purpose.

Amiodarone for arrhythmia in patients with Chagas disease: A systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis.

Background: Chagas disease is a neglected chronic condition caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, with high prevalence and burden in Latin America. Ventricular arrhythmias are common in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy, and amiodarone has been widely used for this purpose. The aim of our study was to assess the effect of amiodarone in patients with Chagas cardiomyopathy.

[Cue exposure treatment and coping skills training as adjuvant therapies in the management of craving in a crack cocaine addict].

Objective: An increased prevalence of crack cocaine users has been observed in clinical samples over the past years, underscoring the need for conducting research and developing treatment strategies aimed at this population. The objective of this study was to describe the case of a crack cocaine addict (inpatient) submitted to cue exposure treatment (CET) and coping skills training (CS) as adjuvant approaches to the conventional addiction treatment.

Case Description: A male patient, 29 years old, single, with complete high school, was dependent on crack cocaine and marijuana and also had a diagnosis of harmful alcohol use.

Evidence that folic acid deficiency is a major determinant of hyperhomocysteinemia in Parkinson's disease.

In the present work we measured blood levels of total homocysteine ((t)Hcy), vitamin B(12) and folic acid in patients with Parkinson s disease (PD) and in age-matched controls and searched for possible associations between these levels with smoking, alcohol consumption, L-DOPA treatment and disease duration in PD patients. We initially observed that plasma (t)Hcy levels were increased by around 30 % in patients affected by PD compared to controls. Linear correlation, multiple regression and comparative analyses revealed that the major determinant of the increased plasma concentrations of (t)Hcy in PD patients was folic acid deficiency, whereas in controls (t)Hcy levels were mainly determined by plasma vitamin B(12) concentrations.