Adverse Childhood Experiences and alcohol use among U.S.-born and immigrant Latinx youth: the roles of social support and stress hormones.

The biobehavioral correlates of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) among Latinx youth have been strikingly understudied. The purpose of this study was to 1) examine the effects of T-ACEs (e.g.

Editorial: A Better Perspective on Antipsychotic-Related Hyperprolactinemia in Children and Adolescents.

Antipsychotic-induced hyperprolactinemia is common in children and adolescents, but this quotidian presence in our clinics should neither reassure us nor make us complacent. The report by Koch and colleagues stands out against the landscape of trials describing the adverse effects of psychotropic medications in youth. It goes beyond the typical examination of adverse effects in most clinical trials.

Relations of combat stress and posttraumatic stress disorder to 24-h plasma and cerebrospinal fluid interleukin-6 levels and circadian rhythmicity.

Background: Acute and chronic stress can lead to a dysregulation of the immune response. Growing evidence suggests peripheral immune dysregulation and low-grade systemic inflammation in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with numerous reports of elevated plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels. However, only a few studies have assessed IL-6 levels in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

A randomized controlled trial of ganaxolone in posttraumatic stress disorder.

Preclinical and clinical research supports a role for neuroactive steroids in the pathophysiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We investigated ganaxolone (a synthetic 3β-methylated derivative of allopregnanolone, a GABAergic neuroactive steroid) for treatment of PTSD in a proof-of-concept, multisite, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Veteran and non-veteran participants (n = 112) were randomized to ganaxolone or placebo at biweekly escalating doses of 200, 400, and 600 mg twice daily for 6 weeks.

Taurine, energy drinks, and neuroendocrine effects.

Taurine is an amino acid found abundantly in brain, retina, heart, and reproductive organ cells, as well as in meat and seafood. But it is also a major ingredient in popular "energy drinks," which thus constitute a major source of taurine supplementation. Unfortunately, little is known about taurine's neuroendocrine effects.

Tramadol treatment of combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder.

Background: Improved psychopharmacologic treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is needed. Accruing evidence implicates pain-conducting signals in PTSD pathophysiology.

Methods: Four combat-related PTSD patients from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were treated with open-label tramadol hydrochloride (HCL), an atypical analgesic with opioid and non-opioid mechanisms of antinociception.

Circadian rhythmicity, variability and correlation of interleukin-6 levels in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid of healthy men.

Background: Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a cytokine with pleiotropic actions in both the periphery of the body and the central nervous system (CNS). Altered IL-6 secretion has been associated with inflammatory dysregulation and several adverse health consequences. However, little is known about the physiological circadian characteristics and dynamic inter-correlation between circulating and CNS IL-6 levels in humans, or their significance.

Cerebrospinal fluid neuropeptide Y in combat veterans with and without posttraumatic stress disorder.

Accruing evidence indicates that neuropeptide Y (NPY), a peptide neurotransmitter, is a resilience-to-stress factor in humans. We previously reported reduced cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) NPY concentrations in combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) subjects as compared with healthy, non-combat-exposed volunteers. Here we report CSF NPY in combat-exposed veterans with and without PTSD.

Characterization of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma NPY levels in normal volunteers over a 24-h timeframe.

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is abundant in mammals, where it contributes to diverse behavioral and physiological functions, centrally and peripherally, but little information is available in regard to NPY cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)/plasma concentration relationships and dynamics. Since plasma NPY levels are commonly used as proxy "biomarkers" for central NPY activity in stress and mental health research in humans this study aims to better characterize the CSF/plasma NPY relationships. Subjects were eleven healthy male volunteers, admitted to the clinical research center for placement of an indwelling CSF catheter, as well as venous catheter, for 24-h collection of CSF NPY (cNPY) and plasma NPY (pNPY) samples.

Effect of traumatic imagery on cerebrospinal fluid dopamine and serotonin metabolites in posttraumatic stress disorder.

Dopaminergic mechanisms may be involved in the pathophysiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), although the evidence for this is limited; serotonergic mechanisms are implicated largely by virtue of the modest efficacy of serotonergic drugs in the treatment of the disorder. Basal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dopamine and serotonin metabolite concentrations are normal in PTSD patients. However, in the present experiment, we postulated that perturbations in CSF dopamine and serotonin metabolites could be induced by acute psychological stress.

The association between salivary hormone levels and children's inpatient aggression: a pilot study.

Aggression is a common management problem for child psychiatry hospital units. We describe an exploratory study with the primary objective of establishing the feasibility of linking salivary concentrations of three hormones (testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone [DHEA], and cortisol) with aggression. Between May 2011 and November 2011, we recruited 17 psychiatrically hospitalized boys (age 7-9 years).

Cigarette smokers have reduced risk for post-dural puncture headache.

Background:   Although headache is the most common complication of dural puncture, knowledge gaps remain about patient-related risks. Data are lacking on the role, if any, of tobacco smoking, race, anxiety, depression, and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in conferring risk for post-dural puncture headache (PDPH).

Objective:   To determine the influence of tobacco smoking, race, anxiety,depressed mood, and PTSD on the risk for PDPH.

Effect of childhood physical abuse on cortisol stress response.

Rationale: Abuse and neglect are highly prevalent in children and have enduring neurobiological effects. Stressful early life environments perturb the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which in turn may predispose to psychiatric disorders in adulthood. However, studies of childhood maltreatment and adult HPA function have not yet rigorously investigated the differential effects of maltreatment subtypes, including physical abuse.

Post-traumatic stress symptoms and trauma exposure in youth with first episode bipolar disorder.

Aims: To examine the prevalence of trauma exposure as well as the rates and effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adolescents with bipolar disorder following a first manic episode.

Methods: Adolescents (12-18 years) with DSM-IV bipolar I disorder and experiencing their first manic or mixed episode were recruited. Participants underwent structured diagnostic interviews, completed the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC), and were prospectively evaluated using diagnostic, symptomatic and functional assessments over the course of 12 months.

Psychopharmacologic treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents: a review.

Objective: Despite the high prevalence and significant morbidity associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children and adolescents, there are limited and conflicting data to guide psychopharmacologic interventions. With these considerations in mind, we sought to summarize the current evidence for psychopharmacologic interventions in youth with PTSD.

Data Sources/study Selection: We conducted a literature review of the National Library of Medicine to identify publications of pharmacologic treatments for youth with PTSD or posttraumatic stress symptoms.

Low cerebrospinal fluid and plasma orexin-A (hypocretin-1) concentrations in combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder.

The hypothalamic neuropeptide, orexin-A has a number of regulatory effects in humans and pre-clinical evidence suggests a link to neuroendocrine systems known to be pathophysiologically related to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, there are no reports of central nervous system (CNS) or peripheral orexin-A concentrations in patients with PTSD, or any anxiety disorder. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma levels of orexin-A were serially determined in patients with PTSD and healthy comparison subjects to characterize the relationships between orexin-A (in the CNS and peripheral circulation) and central indices of monoaminergic neurotransmission and to determine the degree to which CNS orexin-A concentrations reflect those in the circulating blood.

Low cerebrospinal fluid neuropeptide Y concentrations in posttraumatic stress disorder.

Background: Neuropeptide Y (NPY), a peptide neurotransmitter that regulates stress and anxiety, has been proposed to be a stress resilience factor in humans. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a stress-related anxiety disorder. We hypothesized that central nervous system NPY is dysregulated in PTSD and sought to redress the absence of central NPY data in the disorder.

Effects of trauma-related audiovisual stimulation on cerebrospinal fluid norepinephrine and corticotropin-releasing hormone concentrations in post-traumatic stress disorder.

Background: Although elevated concentrations of both corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and norepinephrine are present in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the effects of exposure to traumatic stimuli on these stress-related hormones in CSF are unknown.

Methods: A randomized, within-subject, controlled, cross-over design was used, in which patients with war-related PTSD underwent 6-h continuous lumbar CSF withdrawal on two occasions per patient (6-9 weeks apart). During one session the patients watched a 1-h film containing combat footage (traumatic film) and in the other a 1-h film on how to oil paint (neutral film).

The treatment of generalized anxiety disorder with pregabalin, an atypical anxiolytic.

A constellation of pharmacologic treatments for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) have been developed over the past five decades, although each has a number of potential drawbacks in clinical practice. This review addresses one potentially new pharmacologic treatment for generalized anxiety disorder, the gamma-aminobutyric acid analogue pregabalin. We review the mechanism of action, and pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of pregabalin as well as the results of 5 double-blind, placebo-controlled trials of pregabalin in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

CSF corticotropin-releasing factor in personality disorder: relationship with self-reported parental care.

This cross-sectional investigation tests the relationship between the level of self-reported childhood parental care and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) concentration in adults with and without personality disorder (PD). Based on preclinical models of the lasting effect of post-natal parental care on central CRF function, the primary hypothesis was that childhood parental care, as reflected by the parental bonding inventory (PBI) care and involvement subscale, is inversely correlated with adult CSF CRF levels. The sample includes cerebrospinal fluid CRF samples from 19 subjects who were included in a previously published report on the relationship between CRF level and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire score.

CSF testosterone: relationship to aggression, impulsivity, and venturesomeness in adult males with personality disorder.

Objective: Studies of various species suggest that testosterone, assayed in various compartments, is correlated with aggression and possibly related behaviors. The objective of this study was to assess the relationship between cerebrospinal fluid testosterone (CSF TEST) and measures of aggression, impulsivity, and venturesomeness in male personality disordered subjects and test the hypothesis that CSF TEST would correlate directly with each measure in this group.

Methods: Lumbar CSF for morning basal levels of testosterone were obtained from 31 male subjects with personality disorder.

Elevated cerebrospinal fluid substance p concentrations in posttraumatic stress disorder and major depression.

Objective: The authors tested the hypothesis that concentrations of the pain-transmitting neuropeptide substance P are elevated in the CSF of patients with major depression or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which have overlapping symptoms. The authors also sought to determine if CNS substance P concentrations change on provocation of symptoms in PTSD patients.

Method: The authors measured CSF substance P concentrations in medication-free patients with either major depression or PTSD and in healthy comparison subjects.