Efficacy of new-generation antidepressants assessed with the Montgomery-Asberg depression rating scale, the gold standard clinician rating scale : a meta-analysis of randomised placebo-controlled trials

It has been claimed that efficacy estimates based on the Hamilton Depression Rating-Scale (HDRS) underestimate antidepressants true treatment effects due to the instrument's poor psychometric properties. The aim of this study is to compare efficacy estimates based on the HDRS with the gold standard procedure, the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating-Scale (MADRS)

Cognitive behavioral group therapy versus psychoeducational intervention in Parkinson's disease

Objective: The aim of the current study was to evaluate whether cognitive behavioral group therapy has a positive impact on psychiatric, and motor and non-motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Methods: We assigned 20 PD patients with a diagnosis of psychiatric disorder to either a 12-week cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) group or a psychoeducational protocol. For the neurological examination, we administered the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale and the non-motor symptoms scale. The severity of psychiatric symptoms was assessed by means of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, and the Clinical Global Impressions. Results: Cognitive behavioral group therapy was effective in treating depression and anxiety symptoms as well as reducing the severity of non-motor symptoms in PD patients; whereas, no changes were observed in PD patients treated with the psychoeducational protocol. Conclusion: CBT offered in a group format should be considered in addition to standard drug therapy in PD patient

Depression and suicide risk prediction models using blood-derived multi-omics data

More than 300 million people worldwide experience depression; annually, ~800,000 people die by suicide. Unfortunately, conventional interview-based diagnosis is insufficient to accurately predict a psychiatric status. We developed machine learning models to predict depression and suicide risk using blood methylome and transcriptome data from 56 suicide attempters (SAs), 39 patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), and 87 healthy controls. Our random forest classifiers showed accuracies of 92.6% in distinguishing SAs from MDD patients, 87.3% in distinguishing MDD patients from controls, and 86.7% in distinguishing SAs from controls. We also developed regression models for predicting psychiatric scales with R2 values of 0.961 and 0.943 for Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression???17 and Scale for Suicide Ideation, respectively. Multi-omics data were used to construct psychiatric status prediction models for improved mental health treatment

Evaluating Depressive Symptoms in Schizophrenia: A Psychometric Comparison of the Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale

Background: The aim of this study was to compare two measures of depression in patients with schizophrenia and schizophrenia spectrum disorder, including patients with delusional and schizoaffective disorder, to conclude implications for their application. Sampling and Methods: A total of 278 patients were assessed using the Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia (CDSS) and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17). The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) was also applied. At admission and discharge, a principal component analysis was performed with each depression scale. The two depression rating scales were furthermore compared using correlation and regression analyses. Results: Three factors were revealed for the CDSS and HAMD-17 factor component analysis. A very similar item loading was found for the CDSS at admission and discharge, whereas results of the loadings of the HAMD-17 items were less stable. The first two factors of the CDSS revealed correlations with positive, negative and general psychopathology. In contrast, multiple significant correlations were found for the HAMD-17 factors and the PANSS sub-scores. Multiple regression analyses demonstrated that the HAMD-17 accounted more for the positive and negative symptom domains than the CDSS. Conclusions:The present results suggest that compared to the HAMD-17, the CDSS is a more specific instrument to measure depressive symptoms in schizophrenia and schizophrenia spectrum disorder, especially in acutely ill patients. Copyright (c) 2012 S. Karger AG, Base

Relationship between obsessive beliefs and symptoms in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder

Introduction: Misinterpretation of intrusive thoughts because of obsessive beliefs has been thought to be important in the development of obsessive compulsive symptoms. In current study, (I) the difference between OCD patients and healthy controls in regard of obsessive beliefs and (II) the relation of obsesive beliefs with the prevelance and severity of obsessive compulsive symptoms was investigated. Methods: The current study included 47 OCD patients and 44 healthy controls who have same properties with regard to age, sex and duration of education. All subjects were applied to Obsessive Beliefs Scale, Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Scale, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale and Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale. OCD patients were applied to Yale Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale as well as the other scales. Results: In analyses by controlling depression and anxiety scores, OCD patients had significantly higher scores than controls, with regard to all subscales of Obsessive Beliefs Scale. Also, prevalence of obsessive compulsive symptoms other than cleaning were correlated with obsessive beliefs about “responsibility and threat estimation” and “perfectionism and need for certainty”. Hovewer, there was no correlation in between severity of obsessive compulsive symptoms and subscale scores of Obsessive Beliefs Scale. Conclusion: Excluding the effects of depression and anxiety, generally the results suggests that obsessive beliefs have an important role for development of obsessive compulsive symptoms. Future studies of seperated OCD subgroup with regard to obsessive compulsive symptoms will be helpful in determinig the difference among these subgroups in regard of obsessive beliefs. © 2015 by Turkish Association of Neuropsychiatry

Psychological symptoms in obesity and related factors

Introduction: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between levels of depression and anxiety symptoms and quality of life, self-esteem in obesity. Methods: Fifty-two subjects whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is 30 kg/m² and over and 43 control whose BMI is normal were recruited for this study. The socio demographic data form, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D17), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A), Quality of Life Scale Short Form (WHOQOL-Brief-TR), Coopersmith Self Esteem Scale (CSES), The Eating Attitudes (EAT), were applied to the participants. Results: In this study most of the patients are women, married, postgraduated and live in urban areas. It was determined to scores of HAM-D17, HAM-A and EAT are higher in obese group than control group; WHOQOL-Brief-TR physical field scores was lower in obese group than control group. CSES scores wasn’t difference between obese and control group. In obese group, there was HAM-D17 and HAM-A scores a negative correlation between quality of life physical field score, negative correlation between CSES score, positive correlation between EAT scale score. There is no correlation between scores of HAM-D17 and HAM-A and BMI. Conclusion: Our results suggest that depressive and anxiety levels are high in induvidual with obesity. They have problems in eating attitudes and their quality of life especially physical field is poor. The psychological symptoms have negative effects on the quality of life, self-esteem, and eating attitudes. Our results suggest that psychiatric support to improving positive effects quality of life and self-esteem in individual with obesity. © 2015 by Turkish Association of Neuropsychiatry

Reflective functioning moderates the relationship between childhood trauma and psychopathology among adolescent outpatients

Mentalization has been considered a buffer against psychopathology in individuals exposed to trauma and abuse. The initial research on mentalizazion by Fonagy (1996), as well as subsequent empirical studies (e.g. Borelli, 2015; Chiesa & Fonagy, 2013), highlighted the role of reflective functioning (RF) as a protective factor for individuals exposed to trauma in childhood against maladpative outcomes. In recent years, association between mentalization and early traumatic experiences has gained an increasing interest among clinical and empirical studies. With regard to adolescence, literature on the relationship between traumatic experiences and RF is still scarce. Nonetheless, an evaluation of these adaptive and maladaptive developmental processes could have important clinical implications in adolescence. The aim of this study was to examine the role of RF as a resilience factor against the development of several psychiatric conditions in a sample of N = 60 adolescent outpatients. Participants were recruited in public mental health services. Each patient was evaluated, at the intake, with M.I.N.I. (Sheehan et al. 1994), SCID-II (First et al., 1997) and self-report tests: Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (Bernstein & Fink, 1998), Cambridge Depersonalization Scale (CDS; Sierra & Berrios 2000), Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D; Hamilton, 1960) and Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (HAM-A; Hamilton 1959). During the first month of treatment the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI, George et al., 1985) was also administered, and the AAI transcripts were assessed with the RF Scale (Fonagy et al., 1998). Findings showed that adverse experiences in childhood predicted several psychopathological dimensions; mostly, RF played as a moderator of the relationship between these variables. The clinical implications of these findings were addressed

Smartphone data as objective measures of bipolar disorder symptoms

The daily electronic self-monitoring Smartphone software “MONARCA” was used by 17 patients with bipolar disorder for 3 consecutive months. Patients were rated fortnightly using Hamilton Depression rating Scale 17 items (HDRS-17) and Young Mania rating Scale (YMRS) (102 ratings) with blinding for Smartphone data. Objective Smartphone measures such as physical and social activity correlated with clinically rated depressive symptoms. Self-monitored depressive symptoms correlated significantly with HDRS-17 items score

No relationship between baseline salivary alpha-amylase and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory Score in drug-naïve patients with short-illness-duration first episode major depressive disorder : an exploratory study

Salivary ?-amylase (sAA) activity alternations are observed in major depressive disorder (MDD) being associated with depression severity and its specific psychopathological dimensions with anxiety being attributed to distress. No data is available on sAA in MDD according to Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD-17) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). The exploratory study examines whether and to what extent baseline sAA level is interrelated to the psychopathological features including severity of symptoms and specific psychopathological dimensions. The basal, non-stimulated sAA activity was studied in 20 non-late-life adult, treatment-naïve MDD patients with short-illness-duration and in 20 age- and sex-matched healthy controls along with psychometric assessments with Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD-17) and Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Significantly lower (p=0.011) sAA activity was observed in MDD as compared to controls. No significant correlations were observed between sAA activity and the total HAMD-17 score as well as with regard to the specific core depression, insomnia, anxiety and somatic HAM-D psychopathological dimensions. No significant correlations were also found between sAA and STAIX-1 and STAIX-2 scores. Low baseline sAA levels in MDD with no correlations between sAA and psychopathological features including severity of symptoms and specific psychopathological dimensions was found

Comparing the effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation and electroconvulsive therapy in the treatment of depression : a systematic review and meta-analysis

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is the longest standing psychiatric treatment available and has unequivocal benefit in severe depression. However this treatment comes with a number of side effects such as memory impairment. On the other hand, Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) is a relatively new form of treatment which has been shown to be efficacious in patients suffering from a number of psychopathologies, including severe depression, with few reported side effects. Due to its potential therapeutic efficacy and lack of side effects, rTMS has gained traction in the treatment of depression, with a number of authors keen to see it take over from ECT. However, it is not clear whether rTMS represents a therapeutic alternative to ECT. This meta-analysis will therefore compare the "gold standard" treatment for severe depression, with the relatively new but promising rTMS. A literature search will be performed with the intention to include all randomised clinical trials. The null hypothesis is that there is no difference in the antidepressant efficacy between the two types of treatment modalities. Statistical analysis of Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) scores will be performedpeer-reviewe