Background: Medical interaction and exploration techniques are the most important tools that medical students have to acquire in the subject of psychiatry and psychotherapy. The new digital technologies currently available, such as virtual reality (VR), as important supplements can contribute to a significant improvement in the teaching of psychiatric-psychopathological learning content as well as, in particular, the technique of ascertaining the psychiatric history and diagnosis.
Objective: Evaluation of the Bochum Avatar Exploration Project (AVEX) as part of the curricular course in medical studies at the Ruhr University Bochum for its possibilities to convey learning content and techniques of anamnesis and diagnosis in the subject of psychiatry and psychotherapy.
Methods: In AVEX, a total of 87 medical students in the clinical study section have so far been able to enter into a dialogue with "mentally ill" avatars and gain experience with VR technology as a learning and teaching method in the subject of psychiatry and psychotherapy.
Results: Despite the limited possibilities for interaction with the digital avatars, it is possible to achieve a substantial transfer of learning content in psychiatry; however, the students must be well supported by the lecturers.
Conclusion: The AVEX project already shows promising possibilities for supplementing the teaching of medical students, even if the fit of questions and replies in dialogue with the virtual avatars still needs to be improved. As advances in the linguistic communication of emotions and the visual effects of the avatar representation can be predicted, the significance of this technology will continue to increase.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00115-024-01610-y | DOI Listing |
Sleep
January 2025
Sleep Research & Treatment Center, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Health, Penn State University, College of Medicine, Hershey PA, USA.
Study Objectives: Although heart rate variability (HRV), a marker of cardiac autonomic modulation (CAM), is known to predict cardiovascular morbidity, the circadian timing of sleep (CTS) is also involved in autonomic modulation. We examined whether circadian misalignment is associated with blunted HRV in adolescents as a function of entrainment to school or on-breaks.
Methods: We evaluated 360 subjects from the Penn State Child Cohort (median 16y) who had at least 3-night at-home actigraphy (ACT), in-lab 9-h polysomnography (PSG) and 24-h Holter-monitoring heart rate variability (HRV) data.
Neuroradiology
January 2025
Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, 400016, China.
Introduction: Bipolar disorder (BD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) have overlapping clinical presentations which may make it difficult for clinicians to distinguish them potentially resulting in misdiagnosis. This study combined structural MRI and machine learning techniques to determine whether regional morphological differences could distinguish patients with BD and MDD.
Methods: A total of 123 participants, including BD (n = 31), MDD (n = 48), and healthy controls (HC, n = 44), underwent high-resolution 3D T1-weighted imaging.
Sci Rep
January 2025
INSERM, Bergonié Institute, BPH, U1219, CIC-P 1401, University of Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
In vitro and animal studies have suggested that inoculation with herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) can lead to amyloid deposits, hyperphosphorylation of tau, and/or neuronal loss. Here, we studied the association between HSV-1 and Alzheimer's disease biomarkers in humans. Our sample included 182 participants at risk of cognitive decline from the Multidomain Alzheimer Preventive Trial who had HSV-1 plasma serology and an amyloid PET scan.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArch Womens Ment Health
January 2025
Erasmus MC - Sophia Children's Hospital, Department Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Division Obstetrics and Fetal Medicine, University Medical Centre Rotterdam, Dr. Molewaterplein 40, 3015 GD, Rotterdam, South Holland, The Netherlands.
Purpose: Psychosocial risk factors are frequently present in pregnant women and are associated with adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes. Professional guidelines recommend early detection of vulnerability and provision of multidisciplinary care, including an integrated care plan for pregnant women with social factors, such as residing in deprived areas, teenage pregnancy, and psychiatric illness. However, to date, such approach is impeded by lack of data on co-occurrence of vulnerability.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhysiol Rev
January 2025
University of Zurich, Vetsuise Faculty, Institute of Veterinary Physiology, Zurich, Switzerland.
Metabolic energy stored mainly as adipose tissue is homeostatically regulated. There is strong evidence that human body weight () is physiologically regulated, i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!