Do young women have an accurate perception about their pelvic floor muscle contraction? An agreement study about self-perception and physical evaluation of the pelvic muscles contraction by the PERFECT scheme.

Background: Many women have difficulty in activating the pelvic floor muscles (PFM). This is a concerning factor for health professionals and public government institutions, as an unhealthy PFM could be associated with the presence of PFM dysfunctions. Therefore, the aim of the study was to analyze the agreement between the perception of young women about their PFM contraction and the results of a physical assessment, according to the strength, endurance, and contraction repetitions.

Reliability of the PERFECT scheme assessed by unidigital and bidigital vaginal palpation.

Introduction And Hypothesis: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the inter- and intra-rater reliability of the PERFECT scheme assessed by uni- and bidigital vaginal palpation in young nulligravid women.

Methods: Forty healthy women [median age 22 (19-34) years] were evaluated by unidigital vaginal palpation by both Examiners A and C, while the other 40 participants [median age 23.5 (19-35) years] were assessed by Examiners B and C by bidigital vaginal palpation.

Comparative response to electroconvulsive therapy in medication-resistant bipolar I patients with depression and mixed state.

Objectives: We compared the response with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) of bipolar I patients resistant to pharmacological treatment, who presented depression or mixed state (MS).

Methods: Ninety-six bipolar I patients according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition were included in the study (46 with major depressive episode and 50 with MS). Bilateral ECT was delivered using a brief pulse stimulator Mecta 5000Q (Mecta Corp, Lake Oswego, Ore) on a twice-a-week schedule.

Plasma Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in treatment-resistant depressed patients receiving electroconvulsive therapy.

There is an increasing evidence that the Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) could be involved in the mode of action of antidepressants and, perhaps, of ECT. This study aimed to investigate whether the clinical course of medication-resistant depressed patients following a course of ECT might be associated with changes of plasma BDNF concentrations. Our findings showed that at T0 (baseline) plasma BDNF levels of patients were significantly lower than those of control subjects, and that at T2 (after ECT) were significantly increased in parallel with the decrease of the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) total score.