The role of gender in a large international OCD sample: A Report from the International College of Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS) Network.

Introduction: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is characterized by a range of phenotypic expressions. Gender may be a relevant factor in mediating the disorder's heterogeneity. The aim of the present report was to explore a large multisite clinical sample of OCD patients, hypothesizing existing demographic, geographical and clinical differences between male and female patients with OCD.

Gender, age at onset, and duration of being ill as predictors for the long-term course and outcome of schizophrenia: an international multicenter study.

Background: The aim of the current study was to explore the effect of gender, age at onset, and duration on the long-term course of schizophrenia.

Methods: Twenty-nine centers from 25 countries representing all continents participated in the study that included 2358 patients aged 37.21 ± 11.

Modeling psychological function in patients with schizophrenia with the PANSS: an international multi-center study.

Background: The aim of the current study was to explore the changing interrelationships among clinical variables through the stages of schizophrenia in order to assemble a comprehensive and meaningful disease model.

Methods: Twenty-nine centers from 25 countries participated and included 2358 patients aged 37.21 ± 11.

Prevalence and clinical picture of premenstrual syndrome in females from Bulgaria.

Background: Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and its more severe form premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) are highly prevalent conditions, but there seems to be ethnic and cultural variances in their distribution.

Aims: To explore the prevalence of PMS/PMDD and their typical clinical features in a Bulgarian population.

Materials And Methods: This investigation was designed and executed as a cross-sectional descriptive study.

Staging of Schizophrenia With the Use of PANSS: An International Multi-Center Study.

Introduction: A specific clinically relevant staging model for schizophrenia has not yet been developed. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the factor structure of the PANSS and develop such a staging method.

Methods: Twenty-nine centers from 25 countries contributed 2358 patients aged 37.

Lifetime bipolar disorder comorbidity and related clinical characteristics in patients with primary obsessive compulsive disorder: a report from the International College of Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS).

Introduction: Bipolar disorder (BD) and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) are prevalent, comorbid, and disabling conditions, often characterized by early onset and chronic course. When comorbid, OCD and BD can determine a more pernicious course of illness, posing therapeutic challenges for clinicians. Available reports on prevalence and clinical characteristics of comorbidity between BD and OCD showed mixed results, likely depending on the primary diagnosis of analyzed samples.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder in the elderly: A report from the International College of Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS).

Introduction: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a highly disabling condition, with frequent early onset. Adult/adolescent OCD has been extensively investigated, but little is known about prevalence and clinical characterization of geriatric patients with OCD (G-OCD≥65years). The present study aimed to assess prevalence of G-OCD and associated socio-demographic and clinical correlates in a large international sample.

Childhood, adolescent and adult age at onset and related clinical correlates in obsessive-compulsive disorder: a report from the International College of Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS).

Objective: Many studies suggest that age at onset (AAO) is an important factor for clinically differentiating patients with juvenile and adult onset of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The present international study aimed to assess the prevalence of different AAO groups and compare related socio-demographic and clinical features in a large sample of OCD patients.

Methods: A total of 431 OCD outpatients, participating in the ICOCS network, were first categorised in groups with childhood (≤12 years), adolescent (13-17 years) and adult-onset (≥18 years), then in pre-adult and adult onset (≥18 years) and their socio-demographic and clinical features compared.

Cigarette smoking in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder: a report from the International College of Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS).

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) showed a lower prevalence of cigarette smoking compared to other psychiatric disorders in previous and recent reports. We assessed the prevalence and clinical correlates of the phenomenon in an international sample of 504 OCD patients recruited through the International College of Obsessive Compulsive Spectrum Disorders (ICOCS) network. Cigarette smoking showed a cross-sectional prevalence of 24.

Electroconvulsive therapy in Bulgaria: a snapshot of past and present.

Introduction: Whereas the use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has been frequently surveyed in Western Europe, information about the practice of ECT in Eastern Europe is limited. To date, there has been no information about the present state of ECT use in Bulgaria.

Objective: The aim of this project was to survey current ECT practice in Bulgaria.