Detecting simulation of attention deficits using reaction time tests.

The current study examined if a newly developed series of reaction time tests, the Computerized Tests of Information Processing (CTIP), were sensitive to simulation of attention deficits commonly caused by traumatic brain injury (TBI). The CTIP consists of three reaction time tests: Simple RT, Choice RT, and Semantic Search RT. These tests were administered to four groups: Control, Simulator, Mild TBI, and Severe TBI.

Venlafaxine extended-release capsules in panic disorder: flexible-dose, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Background: Venlafaxine extended-release (ER) has proven efficacy in the treatment of anxiety symptoms in major depression, generalised anxiety disorder and social anxiety disorder.

Aims: To evaluate the efficacy, safety and tolerability of venlafaxine ER in treating panic disorder.

Method: Adult out-patients (n=361) with panic disorder were randomly assigned to receive venlafaxine ER (75-225 mg/day) or placebo for up to 10 weeks in a double-blind study.

Paternal filicide in Québec.

In this retrospective study, relevant demographic, social, and clinical variables were examined in 77 cases of paternal filicide. Between 1991 and 2001, all consecutive coroners' files on domestic homicide in Québec, Canada, were reviewed, and 77 child victims of 60 male parent perpetrators were identified. The results support data indicating that more fathers commit filicide than do mothers.

Central cholecystokinin activity in irritable bowel syndrome, panic disorder, and healthy controls.

Objective: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and panic disorder (PD) coexist with a high frequency. However, the nature of this relationship remains obscure. We have proposed that PD and IBS may share a common dysfunction of the central cholecystokinin (CCK) system.

Re-evaluation of randomized control trials of lithium monotherapy: a cohort effect.

Objective: The reported reduction of lithium's efficacy in the prophylaxis of bipolar illness has been attributed to various factors, including diagnostic changes and heterogeneous study designs. We attempted to quantify the impact of pre-randomization enrichment designs and diagnostic drift on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of lithium maintenance therapy.

Methods: Using the Cochrane RCT search filter, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and PSYCHINFO were searched (1966 to June 2004) for all available randomized studies using the text word 'lithium'.

Open-label pilot study of St. John's wort in adolescent depression.

Aim: Clinical experience suggests the use of alternative remedies, such as St. John's Wort (SJW), in adolescents with affective disorders is increasing. In view of the paucity of documented, well-established, and safe antidepressant medications for children and adolescents, it was important to investigate the potential usefulness of SJW in adolescents with major depressive disorders (MDD).

Community treatment orders: profile of a Canadian experience.

Objective: This study reports the first published Canadian profile of a sample of psychiatric patients from the Royal Ottawa Hospital in Ottawa, Ontario, who were issued community treatment orders (CTOs).

Method: We undertook a population study of sociodemographic and health care use patterns from January 2001 to September 2003, using a standardized information collection tool.

Results: The issuance of CTOs was associated with a statistically significant reduction in the number and length of hospital admissions and increased use of supportive community-based services and supportive housing.

Clonidine pre-treatment fails to block acute smoking-induced EEG arousal/mood in cigarette smokers.

Given the arousal eliciting actions of smoking and nicotine, and the contributing role of noradrenaline in brain arousal systems, this study examined the neuroelectric and affective correlates of cigarette smoking following acute pre-treatment with the alpha 2-noradrenergic auto-receptor agonist, clonidine. In a double-blind placebo-controlled crossover design, quantitative electroencephalography (EEG), mood, and smoking withdrawal symptoms were assessed in 12 overnight smoking abstinence smokers, before and after sham and cigarette smoking. Orally administered clonidine (0.

Gender differences in anxiety-related traits in patients with panic disorder.

This study examined gender differences in anxiety-related personality traits in patients with panic disorder with or without agoraphobia (PD+/-AG). Outpatients (101 total) with SCID confirmed PD+/-AG completed the Anxiety Sensitivity Index (ASI), the Trait form of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-T), the NEO Personality Inventory Revised (NEO PI-R), and the Retrospective Self-Report of Inhibition (RSRI) as part of their assessment. Significant gender differences were not detected for the total ASI scores.

An open-label trial of interpersonal psychotherapy in depressed patients with coronary disease.

High rates of depression have been reported in patients with coronary artery disease, and depression has been repeatedly shown to adversely affect cardiac morbidity and mortality. Despite these findings, little work has been devoted to evaluating effective antidepressant treatments for this subpopulation. This open-label trial assessed the efficacy and acceptability of interpersonal psychotherapy in depressed patients with stable coronary artery disease.

MMPI as a measure of subthreshold and residual psychopathology among the offspring of lithium responsive and non-responsive bipolar parents.

Objectives: In bipolar adults, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) can detect residual symptoms and confirm completeness of remission, thus helping to predict response to lithium prophylaxis. In the high-risk and early onset bipolar populations, the association of the MMPI with clinical course and treatment response has not yet been studied. The present study compares MMPI profiles completed by the well or remitted offspring of two groups of bipolar parents divided on the basis of parental response to long-term lithium.

Sensitivity to cholecystokinin-tetrapeptide in major depression.

Background: Sensitivity to the panicogenic effects of cholecystokinin-tetrapeptide (CCK-4) is enhanced in panic disorder patients relative to normal controls (NC). In the present study, we determined whether sensitivity to CCK-4 is enhanced in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) with no history of panic attacks. We also determined whether CCK-4 would exacerbate depressive symptoms.

Association study of serotonin-2A receptor gene polymorphism and panic disorder in patients from Canada and Germany.

The T102C serotonin-2A (5-HT2A) receptor gene polymorphism has been studied extensively in a number of complex psychiatric conditions with mixed results. Recently a genetic association has been described between this polymorphism and panic disorder in a Japanese sample. To evaluate the impact of the T102C polymorphism in panic disorder we genotyped triad families (panic disorder patient and parents), and cases with controls in Canadian and German samples.

Generic replacement of clozapine: a simple decision model from a Canadian perspective.

Objective: Increased incidence of relapse has been differences in relapse incidence. The difference at reported upon switching patients with schizophrenia from brand name to generic clozapine. The cost of treating relapsed patients could offset the reduced drug acquisition cost associated with switching.

Differential involvement of amygdaloid CRH system(s) in the salience and valence of the stimuli.

Anxiety is a heterogeneous term encompassing not only state or trait characteristics but also a wide range of pathologies such as generalized anxiety disorders, phobias, panic and obsessive-compulsive disorders, acute stress disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Given that diverse forms of anxiety exist, numerous animal models have been developed, which are considered to be useful in identifying mechanisms underlying anxiety states. Examples of such animal models include paradigms that assess the behavioral response to neurogenic (or painful stimuli) or psychogenic stressors or to cues that had previously been associated with painful stimuli.

Major depressive disorder in adolescence: a brief review of the recent treatment literature.

Objective: Treating adolescents with depression remains a major clinical and public health challenge. Because of the serious morbidity and mortality associated with adolescent major depressive disorder (MDD), there is a need to review the published literature on treatment efficacy to establish effective treatment choices for these adolescents.

Method: We reviewed the recent literature on the treatment of MDD in adolescents using the Medline and PsycINFO computerized databases.

Effects of stimulus modality and response mode on the P300 event-related potential differentiation of young and elderly adults.

The P300 event-related brain potential (ERP) was examined in 14 young (20 - 29 years of age) and 16 elderly (60 - 82 years of age) adult subjects during the performance of auditory and visual discrimination tasks requiring silent counting or key pressing in response to target stimuli. P300 latencies were longer in elderly (vs young) adults and in visual (vs auditory) tasks, and visual tasks elicited larger P300 amplitudes than auditory tasks in both age groups. Neither stimulus modality nor response mode affected P300 differentiation of young and elderly subjects.

Validation of a simple, ethologically relevant paradigm for assessing anxiety in mice.

Although numerous behavioral tests are available to assess anxiety, we introduce a simplified version of a previously established test that is exquisitely sensitive and reliable. The latency to consume a palatable snack (graham wafer crumbs) was assessed among mice in their home cage and in an unfamiliar environment, as well as in the presence or absence of predator scent. The effects of various anxiolytics and nonanxiolytics were evaluated in these paradigms.

Descartes' Passions of the soul--seeds of psychiatry?

Rene Descartes (1596-1650), often called the 'father of modern philosophy', aimed at rooting all knowledge in certainty so that our understanding of the world could progress without error. To achieve this, he needed at least one sure thing on which to build. Starting with the most basic knowledge, the fact of his own existence--cogito ergo sum (I think therefore I am), he systematically proceeded to explain the world.

Selecting effective long-term treatment for bipolar patients: monotherapy and combinations.

This article explores the roles of monotherapy and drug combinations in finding effective long-term treatment for individual patients with bipolar disorder. While current practice relies heavily on combinations, many bipolar patients can be successfully stabilized if the initial monotherapy is carefully selected according to the patient's clinical characteristics. The data show that (1) unequivocal responders to long-term monotherapies such as lithium, lamotrigine, or atypical neuroleptics each have a very different clinical profile, including clinical presentation and course, comorbidity, and, in particular, family history and (2) bipolar patients who respond very well to a long-term monotherapy have often completely failed on other monotherapies.

Cytokines, stress and depressive illness: brain-immune interactions.

Cytokines, signaling molecules of the immune system, have been implicated as a contributing factor for mood disorders such as depression. Several lines of evidence supporting this contention are briefly reviewed and caveats are introduced. Essentially, a relationship between cytokines and depression is based on the findings that: 1) proinflammatory cytokines (interleukin-1, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha) and bacterial endotoxins elicit sickness behaviors (e.