Alcohol Dependence in Women: Difficulty of Its Assessment in General Practice

International audienc

Executive Functions in Adult Offspring of Alcohol-Dependent Probands: Toward a Cognitive Endophenotype?

International audienceBACKGROUND: Executive function (EF) impairment in alcohol dependence (AD) has been related to the toxic effects of alcohol on frontal lobes. However, this impairment could be partially present before the onset of the disease and might constitute a vulnerability factor. Although a considerable body of research has investigated executive functioning among AD patients, much less attention has been directed toward high-risk individuals. Most studies were carried out among children or adolescents, and very few were conducted in adults. The aim of this study was to examine EF in a group of adult offspring of AD individuals.METHODS: One hundred and fifty-five nonalcoholic adults with (family history positive [FHP]) or without (family history negative [FHN]) family history of AD were included in the study. All participants were screened for past and current psychiatric diagnoses, and alcohol, tobacco, and other substance use. They were compared on self-rated impulsiveness using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11) and EF using a neuropsychological test battery.RESULTS: Group comparison revealed that FHP participants had significantly higher BIS-11 scores than the FHN participants, while neuropsychological examination revealed lower EF scores for FHP participants. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that the number of AD family members was a predictor of EF results, whereas impulsiveness was not.CONCLUSIONS: Nonalcoholic adult offspring of AD individuals showed increased impulsiveness and decreased EF, suggesting weakness of 2 distinct neurobehavioral decision systems. Findings support evidence that EF weaknesses may qualify as a suitable endophenotype candidate for AD

Linear association between social anxiety symptoms and neural activations to angry faces: from subclinical to clinical levels

International audienceSocial anxiety disorder (SAD), which is characterized by the fear of being rejected and negatively evaluated, involves altered brain activation during the processing of negative emotions in a social context. Although associated temperament traits, such as shyness or behavioral inhibition, have been studied, there is still insufficient knowledge to support the dimensional approach, which assumes a continuum from subclinical to clinical levels of social anxiety symptoms. This study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the neural bases of individual differences in social anxiety. Our sample included participants with both healthy/subclinical as well as clinical levels of social anxiety. Forty-six participants with a wide range of social anxiety levels performed a gender decision task with emotional facial expressions during fMRI scanning. Activation in the left anterior insula and right lateral prefrontal cortex in response to angry faces was positively correlated with the level of social anxiety in a regression analysis. The results substantiate, with a dimensional approach, those obtained in previous studies that involved SAD patients or healthy and subclinical participants. It may help to refine further therapeutic strategies based on markers of social anxiety

Linear association between social anxiety symptoms and neural activations to angry faces: From subclinical to clinical levels

International audienceSocial anxiety disorder (SAD), which is characterized by the fear of being rejected and negatively evaluated, involves altered brain activation during the processing of negative emotions in a social context. Although associated temperament traits, such as shyness or behavioral inhibition, have been studied, there is still insufficient knowledge to support the dimensional approach, which assumes a continuum from subclinical to clinical levels of social anxiety symptoms. This study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine the neural bases of individual differences in social anxiety. Our sample included participants with both healthy/subclinical as well as clinical levels of social anxiety. Forty-six participants with a wide range of social anxiety levels performed a gender decision task with emotional facial expressions during fMRI scanning. Activation in the left anterior insula and right lateral prefrontal cortex in response to angry faces was positively correlated with the level of social anxiety in a regression analysis. The results substantiate, with a dimensional approach, those obtained in previous studies that involved SAD patients or healthy and subclinical participants. It may help to refine further therapeutic strategies based on markers of social anxiety

Subsyndromal and syndromal depressive symptoms among older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder: Prevalence and associated factors in a multicenter study

International audienceBackgroundFew studies have examined the prevalence and correlates of subsyndromal and syndromal depressive symptoms (SSSD) among older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder. In this report, we examined the prevalence of SSSD and their associations with sociodemographic characteristics, clinical characteristics of schizophrenia, comorbidity, psychotropic medications, quality of life, functioning and mental health care utilization in a large, multicenter sample of older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder.MethodsData from the Cohort of individuals with Schizophrenia Aged 55 years or more (CSA) were used to examine the prevalence of SSSD, defined using the Center of Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CESD) scale. Clinical characteristics associated with SSSD were explored.ResultsAmong 343 older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder, 78.1% had either subsyndromal (30.6%) or syndromal (47.5%) depressive symptoms. SSSD were independently associated with positive and negative symptoms, lower quality of life, non-late-onset psychosis, benzodiazepine use and urbanicity. There were no significant associations of SSSD with other sociodemographic characteristics and psychotropic medications, or with general medical conditions. We found no significant differences in the proportion of participants who were treated with antidepressants between those with syndromal depressive symptoms and those without depression (22.1% vs. 20.0%, p = 0.89). SSSD were not associated with higher mental health care utilization.LimitationsData were cross-sectional and depression was not evaluated with a semi-structured interview.ConclusionSSSD may be highly prevalent and under-assessed and/or undertreated among older adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorder. Our findings should alert clinicians about the need to assess systematically and regularly depression in this vulnerable population

Psychiatric symptoms and mortality in older adults with major psychiatric disorders: results from a multicenter study

International audienc