Is opioid dependency related to coping strategies?

Using opioid for recreational purposes has a very long history in Iran. Social influence is a useful framework in understanding how the social environment affects the individual's behavioral choices to use drugs. We compared opioid dependents (n=149) with controls (n=221) on measures of coping strategies using the Jalowiec Coping Scale and some socioeconomic factors. The differences in 10 of 15 coping strategies were significant in the study groups (P<0.05). Although, the combined score of problem-oriented and affective-oriented items did not show any significant difference between the two groups. There was a significant relation between opioid dependence with smoking cigarettes (P<0.001), lower education (P=0.002), being employed (P<0.001), having children (P<0.001), and being married (P<0.001). Educational programs to improve problem solving and coping skills can be helpful to reduce the rate of dependency to opioid and smoking cigarettes. © 2015, Sadeghali Taziki, et al

A comparative survey of anxiety level in primary school children with working and unemployed mothers in north of Iran; 2013

Background: Anxiety is one of important disorders of mental health in children and adolescents which is influenced by various endogenous and environmental factors. The aim of this study was a comparative survey of anxiety level in primary school children with working and unemployed mothers in Gorgan in 2013. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study, 745 male and female primary school students in public and private schools in Gorgan were selected using a combination sampling (stratification and clustering). For data collection were used Spence Children's Anxiety Scale (SCAS) included 38 questions. The collecting data were analyzed using SPSS-21 statistical software and chi-square and t tests. P values of less than 0.05 were considered as the significance level. Results: The results showed that the average age of students were 9.4 ± 1.65 and in the 38.4% of them were males and 61/6% were female 61/9% of the students had working mothers and 38.1% of their mothers were unemployed. Spence Children's Anxiety Scale total score for the studied sample was 22.74 ± 12.72. A significant difference was observed between two groups of the students with working and unemployed mothers and between two sexes (P<0.05). The separation anxiety and fear of physical harm was the most common disorders and the fear of open spaces also had the lowest prevalence. The prevalence of anxiety disorders in children with unemployed mothers with lower education levels, in female, in families with fewer children and public school students was more. Conclusion: This study showed that the prevalence of anxiety disorders in students whose mothers are unemployed and among the girls was more. Therefore, it's necessary to pay more attention to the mental health of the mothers and students with considering of their important role in family and society. © 2015 Derakhshanpoor F, et al

Spanish medical students’ attitudes and views towards Mental Health and Psychiatry: a multicentric cross-sectional study.

Objective The aim of this study is to investigate the attitudes towards mental illness and psychiatry among fifth year Spanish medical students. Methods The study included 171 students from three medical schools located in different areas of Spain: Cádiz; UCA (n= 113), Madrid; San Pablo-CEU (n=22), and Barcelona; UAB (n=36). They responded, prior to their undergraduate medical course in psychiatry, to the AMI questionnaire to measure the attitudes towards mental illness and to Balon’s adapted questionnaire to investigate their view towards psychiatry. Results The students (93.4 %) had a positive attitude towards mental illness (AMI). Attitudes towards psychiatry were fairly positive with a few negative views, specifically regarding the role of psychiatrists (items 11 and 13) and the prestige of the specialty (item 16). There were some statistically significant differences between the three medical schools in the perception of psychiatry as a medical discipline. A better attitude towards mental illness was associated with a better view of the overall merits of psychiatry. Conclusions Findings suggest that Spanish medical students do not have a negative attitude towards mental illness and they have a good perception of psychiatry, although there are still some misconceptions about this specialty. These student’s attitudes could favor an appropriate management of patients suffering from mental illness

MicroRNA-9 controls dendritic development by targeting REST

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are conserved noncoding RNAs that function as posttranscriptional regulators of gene expression. miR-9 is one of the most abundant miRNAs in the brain. Although the function of miR-9 has been well characterized in neural progenitors, its role in dendritic and synaptic development remains largely unknown. In order to target miR-9 in vivo, we developed a transgenic miRNA sponge mouse line allowing conditional inactivation of the miR-9 family in a spatio-temporal-controlled manner. Using this novel approach, we found that miR-9 controls dendritic growth and synaptic transmission in vivo. Furthermore, we demonstrate that miR-9-mediated downregulation of the transcriptional repressor REST is essential for proper dendritic growth.Fil: Giusti, Sebastian Alejandro. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Vogl, Annette M.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Brockmann, Marina M.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Vercelli, Claudia Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigación en Biomedicina de Buenos Aires - Instituto Partner de la Sociedad Max Planck; ArgentinaFil: Rein, Martin L.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Trümbach, Dietrich. Helmholtz Zentrum München; AlemaniaFil: Wurst, Wolfgang. Helmholtz Zentrum München; AlemaniaFil: Cazalla, Demian. University of Utah; Estados UnidosFil: Stein, Valentin. Universitaet Bonn; AlemaniaFil: Deussing, Jan M.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Refojo, Damian. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; Alemani

Critical Psychiatry

Critical psychiatry appraises and comments upon psychiatric services as they are usually provided. This article, prompted by the publication of a recent book, considers the place of critical psychiatry historically and in the context of contemporary mental health care and treatment

Controversies Surrounding the Hopelessly Ill Patient

Dr. Cassem, who acted as Guest Editor for this issue of the Linacre Quarterly, is Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, and is a member of the psychiatry staff at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is also Faculty Consultant, Center for Law and Health Sciences. Boston University and Director of Residency Training (Psychiatry) at Massachusetts General. In this article, Dr. Cassem examines the controversies which have arisen in dealing with a terminal or hopelessly ill patient. Dr. Cassem is a frequent contributor to medical journals, including Critical Care Medicine and the New England Journal of Medicine