Intermittent Theta-Burst Stimulation Over the DorsoLateral PreFrontal Cortex (DLPFC) in Healthy Subjects Produces No Cumulative Effect on Cortical Excitability.

Intermittent Theta Burst Stimulation (iTBS) is a design of repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) and could be a candidate to replace rTMS in the treatment of depression, thanks to its efficacy, shorter duration, and ease of use. The antidepressant mechanism of iTBS, and whether this mechanism is mediated by a modulation of cortical excitability, remains unknown. Using a randomized double-blind, sham-controlled trial, 30 healthy volunteers received either iTBS or a sham treatment targeting the left DorsoLateral PreFrontal Cortex (L-DLPFC), twice a day over 5 consecutive days.

Effects of a life-skills-based prevention program on self-esteem and risk behaviors in adolescents: a pilot study.

Background: Risk behaviors among young people are a major social and public health issue. This study aims to assess the impact of a life-skills-based prevention program (called Mission Papillagou) on self-esteem, well-being, and risk behaviors among adolescents.

Method: In a two-arm controlled study involving 520 school pupils aged between 10 and 15 years old, participants taking part in the prevention program (the Papillagou group) were compared to pupils who did not take part (the control group).

Excessive checking behavior during an image comparison task in schizophrenia.

Background: Patients with schizophrenia display significant working memory and executive deficits. In patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), several studies suggest that working memory dysfunction may be one of the causes of compulsive checking behaviors. Hence, this study aimed at assessing whether patients with schizophrenia were impaired on an image comparison task used to measure checking behaviors, and whether the origin and profile of impairment on this task was different between schizophrenia and OCD.

[Negative hallucination, self-consciousness and ageing].

Background: Negative hallucinations are characterized by a defect in perception of an object or a person, or a denial of the existence of their perception. Negative hallucinations create blank spaces, due to both an impossible representation and an incapability of investment in reality. They have a close relationship with Cotard's syndrome, delusional theme of organ denial observed in melancholic syndromes in the elderly.

[Harassment in the workplace: clinic and psychopathological factors].

Harassment may be either moral, physical or sexual. It is defined as a phenomenon that happens repeatedly. It is underestimated in professional environments and probably even more so in private life.

[Early stages of schizophrenia, challenges and prospects].

Despite a relatively extensive treatment armamentarium, the evolution of schizophrenic patients overall remains unfavourable. Early treatment is essential and influences the prognosis. Facilitating access to care through the creation of specialised assessment centres to complement the current system of care is one of the possible avenues for improvement.

[Early diagnosis in schizophrenia: a mission for the general practitioners?].

Schizophrenia represents a relatively frequent disease within the population with a prevalence of 1 %. Despite a consistent therapeutic equipment at doctors' disposal, the evolution of this disease remains globally rather unfavourable. For a long time, the classic concept from Magnan "bouffée délirante aiguë" was considered as the main mode of entrance of the schizophrenia.

[Persons suffering from schizophrenia and relapses].

Introduction: In schizophrenia, relapse is a common event that affects more than half the patients within 2 years after a first episode. It is a real setback for them and their relatives. Surprisingly, we do not have much information on how patients and their relatives experience the relapse.

[Insight in schizophrenia: assessment of 31 patients with different scales].

Introduction: Insight is more than frequently altered in schizophrenia, rupture of treatment being one the most known consequences of this impairment. Two different types of scales can be used to assess consciousness: self-questionnaires directly filled-in by the patient or questionnaires assessed by a psychiatrist after an interview. AIM OF THE STUDIES: The goal of this study was first to assess insight in schizophrenic patients with these two different types of scales and then try to find a link between insight impairment and schizophrenic symptoms.

[Treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder].

Treatment of obsessive compulsive disorder has not changed a lot since 2000. Following a cautious assessment of the patient, using adequate scales, OCD patients require a step by step hierarchical treatment. A syndrome of low intensity (Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Score [Y-BOCS] around 15) will be mainly treated by behavioural and cognitive therapy (BCT) especially exposition with prevention of response technique; for a more severe disorder, a drug treatment is required.

[Links between life events, traumatism and dementia; an open study including 565 patients with dementia].

Summary: Ageing is due to a progressive loss of the person's adaptation capability, whereas during this period environmental aggression increases. In the elderly, life events re-present a psychological traumatism that overwhelms the old person and related family, disrupting and fragilising homeostatic balance. A number of authors have suggested a possible link between life traumatisms and the dementia processes.

[post-traumatic stress disorder in the elderly].

Diagnosis of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) requires a past history of psychic traumatism and characteristic psychotraumatic symptoms like re-experiencing of the traumatic event, avoidance of stimuli associated with the traumatic event and increased arousal. In the elderly, PTSD prevalence rate is about 0.9% after 60 years of age.

[Role of personality in depression of the elderly: difference between early and late life depression].

Personality disorders have been implicated in the occurrence of depression in the elderly. The main purpose of this study was to assess the role of personality disorders in depression of the elderly and to distinguish between early and late onset depression. The study included 48 subjects over 65 years of age from a department of psychiatry, who suffered from a major depressive episode according to the criteria of the DSM-III-R, without bipolar characteristics.

[Ten years of clinical experience with clozapine about 170 patients].

The authors describe a clinical trial of 170 patients who received clozapine over a ten year period between September 1989 and September 1999. It is a retrospective study, describing individual responses. Each patient was his own control before and with treatment.

Relationship between symptoms rated with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale and brain measures in schizophrenia.

The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) was used to rate clinical symptoms in 42 inpatients with schizophrenia before they were examined by computed tomography. Significantly higher mean size of lateral and third ventricles, and higher mean cortical atrophy were found in schizophrenic patients compared with healthy control subjects. Ventricular enlargement and cortical atrophy were significantly related to low scores on the Composite subscale of the PANSS.