Problematic consumption of online pornography during the COVID-19 pandemic : clinical recommendations

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is one of the greatest contemporary challenges. Feelings of fear and uncertainty triggered by this pandemic have had noxious effects on people’s mental health. This seems to have increased during quarantine and there is evidence of an intensification of reward-directed behavior. Nevertheless, there are few studies dealing with pornography consumption during this period. The aim of this manuscript is to contextualize this phenomenon during the pandemic and suggest some clinical recommendations on the matter

Homo digitalis

Homo digitalis se refere ao homem modificado pela tecnologia. A realidade virtual (RV) e a realidade aumentada permitem ver o mundo sob a perspectiva de outras pessoas, sendo chamadas de “a máquina de empatia”. Objetivo: analisar como a RV pode ser usada na psiquiatria e na educação médica para promover empatia. Método: realizou-se uma revisão narrativa nas plataformas Medline e Embase, Google Scholar, listas de referências de artigos e em sítios eletrônicos de tecnologia. Artigos em inglês e francês foram selecionados, sem limites temporais para a busca. Resultados: uma revisão de 66 referências demonstrou que a RV pode gerar mudanças cognitivas, emocionais e comportamentais positivas, especialmente em relação a indivíduos de grupos diferentes. As narrativas imersivas com RV facilitam a compreensão empática, colocando o usuário na perspectiva de outra pessoa. A RV também está associada a jogos aplicados e estudos funcionais de atividade cerebral, que indicam potencial para gerar mudanças comportamentais positivas. Estudos maiores e ensaios clínicos são necessários para validar a efetividade dos desfechos e garantir o uso seguro e ético da tecnologia. Conclusão: a revisão demonstrou resultados promissores e um olhar otimista da RV como ferramenta para gerar empatia e promover o bem-estar mental

Crack-cocaine users have less family cohesion than alcohol users

Objective: Many studies correlate characteristics of family functioning and the development of drug addiction. This study sought to evaluate and compare the family environment styles of two groups of psychoactive substance users: 1) alcohol-only users and 2) crack-cocaine users. Methods: Three hundred and sixty-four users of alcohol, crack-cocaine, and other drugs, recruited from research centers in four Brazilian capitals participated in this study. Subjects were evaluated through the Family Environment Scale and the Addiction Severity Index, 6th version (ASI-6). ASI-6 t-scores were compared by analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post-hoc tests. A final model was obtained using a logistic regression analysis. All analyses were adjusted for partner, age, and psychiatric t-score. Results: We found a significant difference between groups in the cohesion subscale (p = 0.044). The post-hoc test revealed a difference of 1.06 points (95%CI 0.11-2.01) between groups 1 (6.4560.28) and 2 (5.3860.20). No significant between-group differences were observed in the other subscales. However, categorical analyses of variables regarding family dynamic showed that crack users more often reported that sometimes people in their family hit each other (30.4% vs. 13.2%, p = 0.007) and that people in their family frequently compared each other regarding work and/or school achievement (57.2% vs. 42.6%, p = 0.041). Conclusion: These results suggest that families of crack-cocaine users are less cohesive than families of alcohol users. This type of family environment may affect treatment outcome, and should thus be adequately approached