Substance abuse and susceptibility to false memory formation: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Funding The open-access publication fee will be covered by the Center for Research in Neuropsychology and Cognitive and Behavioral Intervention (CINEICC), namely by the Neuropsychological Assessment and Aging Processes (NAAP) group.Background: Substance abuse has an impact on various cognitive domains, including memory. Even though this impact has been extensively examined across different subdomains, false memory has been sparsely studied. This systematic review and meta-analysis seek to synthesize the current scientific data concerning false memory formation in individuals with a history of substance abuse. Methods: PubMed, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and PsycINFO were searched to identify all experimental and observational studies in English, Portuguese, and Spanish. Studies were then examined by four independent reviewers and, if they met the inclusion criteria, assessed for their quality. The Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool for randomized controlled trials (RCT) and the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal checklists for quasi-experimental and analytic cross-sectional studies were used to assess the risk of bias. Results: From the 443 screened studies, 27 (and two more from other sources) were considered eligible for full-text review. A final 18 studies were included in the present review. Of these, 10 were conducted with alcoholics or heavy drinkers, four focused on ecstasy/polydrug users, three were done with cannabis users and one focused on methadone maintenance patients with current cocaine dependence. Regarding false memory type, 15 studies focused on false recognition/recall, and three on provoked confabulation. Conclusions: None but one of the studies considering false recognition/recall of critical lures found any significant differences between individuals with a history of substance abuse and healthy controls. However, most of the studies taking into account false recognition/recall of related and unrelated events found that individuals with a history of substance abuse showed significantly higher rates of false memories than controls. Future research should continue to consider different types of false memories as well as their potential association with relevant clinical variables. Systematic review registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=266503, identifier: CRD42021266503. Copyright © 2023 Caetano, Pinho, Ramadas, Lopes, Areosa, Ferreira and Dixe.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Cognitive Training Effectiveness on Memory, Executive Functioning, and Processing Speed in Individuals With Substance Use Disorders: A Systematic Review

Background: Cerebral neuroplasticity is compromised due to substance abuse. There is damage to neuronal areas that are involved in memory and executive functioning. Treatments with worse outcomes are often associated with cognitive deficits that have resulted from substance dependence. However, there is evidence that cognitive training can lead to improvements in cognitive functions and can be useful when treating addictions. This systematic review aims to synthesize evidence on the effectiveness of cognitive training in memory, executive functioning, and processing speed in individuals with substance use disorder (SUD). Methods: The Joanna Briggs Institute’s PICO strategy was used to develop this systematic literature review. Four databases were searched (PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and PsycINFO) to identify controlled randomized clinical studies and quasi-experimental studies, in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, from 1985 to 2019. The literature found was examined by two independent reviewers, who assessed the quality of studies that met the inclusion criteria. The Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for the randomized controlled trials and the ROBINS-I tool for non-randomized studies were used to assess the risk of bias. In data extraction, the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews was considered. Results: From a total of 470 studies, 319 were selected for analysis after the elimination of duplicates. According to the inclusion criteria defined, 26 studies were eligible and evaluated. An evaluation was performed considering the participant characteristics, countries, substance type, study and intervention details, and key findings. Of the 26 selected studies, 14 considered only alcoholics, six included participants with various SUD (alcohol and other substances), three exclusively looked into methamphetamine-consuming users and another three into opioid/methadone users. Moreover, 18 studies found some kind of cognitive improvement, with two of these reporting only marginally Caetano et al. Cognitive Training in Substance Use Disorders significant effects. One study found improvements only in measures similar to the training tasks, and two others had ambiguous results. Conclusions: The included studies revealed the benefits of cognitive training with regard to improving cognitive functions in individuals with SUD. Memory was the most scrutinized cognitive function in this type of intervention, and it is also one of the areas most affected by substance use.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A Sintomatologia Obsessivo-compulsiva: a sua relação com a alexitimia, as experiências traumáticas e a psicopatologia

Introdução: A alexitimia tem sido relatada mais significativamente em sujeitos com perturbação obsessivo-compulsiva (POC), uma vez que estes têm uma dificuldade em reconhecer e descrever as suas próprias emoções. Refira-se também que muitos indivíduos com POC relatam frequentemente terem experienciado situações traumáticas. Porém, não existem estudos nacionais sobre a relação entre a POC, as experiências traumáticas e a alexitimia, justificando-se a pertinência deste estudo. Objetivo: Foram delineados os seguintes: 1) Estudar a relação entre sintomas psicopatológicos, alexitimia e as experiências traumáticas numa amostra clínica e não clínica; 2) Estudar e comparar as experiências traumáticas, os níveis de alexitimia e os sintomas psicopatológicos nas amostras clínica e não clínica; 3) Verificar as associações das variáveis idade, género, estado civil e habilitações literárias com a presença ou ausência de sintomatologia obsessivo-compulsiva. Método: A amostra total é composta por 115 indivíduos com idades entre os 18 e os 64 anos (M=31,50; DP=10,61). Para a criação dos 2 grupos em comparação, recorreu-se ao ponto de corte do MOCI, em que resultados acima de 10 indicam a presença de sintomatologia obsessivo-compulsiva. O grupo clínico tem 40 sujeitos, com idades entre 18 e os 49 anos (M=27,03; DP=7,68) e o grupo não clínico com 75 sujeitos, com idades entre 18 e os 60 anos (M=33,89; DP=11,21). Protocolo engloba: Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (MOCI), Traumatic Experiences Checklist (TEC), Escala de Alexitimia de Toronto (TAS-20) e Inventário de Sintomas Psicopatológicos (BSI). Resultados: A amostra clínica apresenta mais sintomatologia psicopatológica e valores mais elevados de alexitimia, comparativamente à amostra não clínica. Não foram encontradas diferenças entre os grupos na presença de experiências traumáticas, mas a amostra clínica apresenta pontuações mais altas de abuso sexual e de trauma na família de origem. Por fim, na amostra não clínica temos um maior número de associações estatisticamente significativas e de magnitude mais forte entre as variáveis estudadas, comparativamente com o observado na amostra clínica, principalmente na TEC. Conclusão: Verificou-se assim que as experiências traumáticas e a alexitimia, em particular, podem ser um fator que se associa ao surgimento de POC, sendo uma área de estudo futuro perceber se serão igualmente fatores de risco da POC. / Introduction: Alexithymia has been reported more significantly in subjects with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), since they have a hard time recognizing and describing their own emotions. It should also be noted that many individuals with OCD often report experiencing traumatic situations. However, there are no national studies on the relationship between OCD, traumatic experiences and alexithymia, justifying the relevance of this study. Aim: The following were outlined: 1) To study the relationship between psychopathological symptoms, alexithymia and traumatic experiences in a clinical and non-clinical sample; 2) To study and compare the traumatic experiences, the levels of alexithymia and the psychopathological symptoms in the clinical and non-clinical samples; 3) Check the relations of variables age, gender, marital status and literacy with the presence or absence of obsessive-compulsive symptomatology. Method: The total sample is composed of 115 individuals aged between 18 and 64 years (31.50±10.61). For the creation of the 2 groups in comparison, the MOCI cut-off point was used, in which results above 10 indicate the presence of obsessive-compulsive symptomatology. The clinical group had 40 subjects, aged between 18 and 49 years (27.03±7.68) and the nonclinical group with 75 subjects, aged between 18 and 60 years (33,89±11.21). Protocol includes: Maudsley Obsessive Compulsive Inventory (MOCI), Traumatic Experiences Checklist (TEC), Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and Inventory of Psychopathological Symptoms (BSI). Results: The clinical sample presented more psychopathological symptomatology and higher values of alexithymia, compared to the non-clinical sample. No differences were found between the groups in the presence of traumatic experiences but the clinical sample presented higher scores of sexual abuse and trauma in the family of origin. Finally, in the non-clinical sample, we have a greater number of associations that are statistically significant and of stronger magnitude among the studied variables, compared to the clinical sample, especially in the TEC. Conclusion: It was verified that traumatic experiences and alexithymia, in particular, may be a factor that is associated with the onset of POC, being a future study area to understand if they will also be risk factors for OCD

Needs and skills of informal caregivers to care for a dependent person: a crosssectional study

The world is facing many socio-demographic changes, such as an increased average life expectancy and the presence of chronic and non-communicable diseases, which in turn, leads to an enhanced dependency on others. Consequently, the demand for informal caregivers has significantly increased during the past few years. Caring for a dependent person is linked to a series of burdens that often leads to physical, psychological and emotional difficulties. Taking into consideration the difficulties faced by informal caregivers, knowing in which areas of functioning they need more guidance may help to relieve their burden. Therefore, the main goal of this study is to better understand the needs and competencies of the informal caregiver when caring for a dependent person in the different self-care domains.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Effectiveness of a combined intervention on psychological and physical capacities of frail older adults: a cluster randomized controlled trial

Background: Older adults experience physical and psychological declines affecting independency. Adapted and structured combined interventions composed of cognitive stimulation and physical exercise contribute to comorbidities’ reduction. Methods: Multicenter single-blinded two-arm cluster randomized controlled trial conducted to assess effectiveness of a combined intervention (CI), composed of a cognitive stimulation program (CSP) and a physical exercise program (PEP), on psychological and physical capacities of frail older adults as to on their activities of daily living. Were recruited 50 subjects from two elderly end-user organizations. Of these, 44 (65.9% females, mean age of 80.5 8.47 years) were considered eligible, being randomly allocated in experimental (EG) or control group (CG). Data collected at baseline and post-intervention. EG received CI three times a week during 12 weeks. CG received standard care. Non-parametric measures were considered. Results: At baseline, groups were equivalent for study outcomes. The comparison of pre- and post-intervention data revealed that subjects receiving CI reduced depressive symptomatology and risk of fall based on gait and balance, and improved gait speed. Simultaneously, in the CG a significant decline on activities of daily living was observed. Significant results were found among biomechanical parameters of gait (BPG). EG’ effect size revealed to be small (0.2 r < 0.5). CG’ effect size was also small; but for activities of daily living there was an evident decrease. Conclusion: The CI is effective on managing older adults’ psychological and physical capacities.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio