Finasteride Side Effects and Post-Finasteride Syndrome in Male Androgenic Alopecia

Finasteride is in present a relatively frequent prescribed drug for male androgenic alopecia. The adverse effects reported by some patients seem to be notable, consisting of various (physical, mental/ neurological, sexual, etc.) manifestations which are encountered both during Finasteride administration and after treatment cessation (in the form of `post-Finasteride syndrome`). The pharmacological action and the corresponding adverse effects related to Finasteride administration were investigated and published in literature through several and successive studies. In respect to psychiatric disorders, the most notable concern is related to depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts among former users of finasteride with persistent adverse effects. Regarding genito-urinary symptoms, these are usually represented by gynecomastia, decreased interest in sexual intercourse/ low level of sexual desire and erectile dysfunction. Finally, we viewed Finasteride side effects and post-Finasteride syndrome as distinct physio-pathologic entities, thus requiring possible distinct therapeutic approaches. Additional studies will be necessary, in order to further investigate the cerebral neuromodulation of the two relational (cognitive and sexual) functions, both of which may be interfered by administration of hormones or by the corresponding compounds such as Finasteride

The main indicators analysis that characterize the food consumtion evolution in Romania in comparison between the period 2001-2006 and 2007-2014

The analysis on the food consumption is particularly important because it helps us to discover information about the individual's health and economic differences between the two periods studied, outlining the economic impact on human food consumption and the worldwide food trends impact on the food transit that's going on within our country. It have been also noticed changes at the level of urban and rural areas and the differences between the two environments, which illustrates on the one hand the existence of changes in feeding with the accession to the European Union, the tendency being to decrease the number of calories, and the differences between environments demonstrating a higher food consumption for the countryside

Metabolic alterations in experimental models of depression

Introduction: Major depressive disorder is one of the most prevalent psychiatric disorders and is associated with a severe impact on the personal functioning, thus with incurring significant direct and indirect costs. The presence of depression in patients with medical comorbidities increases the risks of myocardial infarction and decreases diabetes control, and adherence to treatment. The mechanism through which these effects are produced is still uncertain. Objectives of this study were to evaluate the metabolic alterations in female Wistar rats with induced depression, with and without administration of Agomelatine. The methods included two experiments. All data were analyzed by comparison with group I (control), and with each other. In the first experiment we induced depression by: exposure to chronic mild stress-group II; olfactory bulbectomy-group III; and exposure to chronic mild stress and hyperlipidic/ hyper caloric diet-group IV. The second experiment was similar with the first but the rats received Agomelatine (0.16mg/ animal): group V (depression induced through exposure to chronic mild stress), VI (depression induced through olfactory bulbectomy) and VII (depression induced through exposure to chronic mild stressing hyperlipidic/ hypercaloric diet). Weight, cholesterol, triglycerides and glycaemia were measured at day 0 and 28, and leptin value was measured at day 28. The results in the 1st experiment revealed significant differences (pconclusion, significant correlations were found between high level of triglycerides and depression induced by chronic stress and olfactory bulbectomy. Agomelatine groups had a lower increase of triglycerides levels

The role of the research and development and the number of patents, in the increase of GDP performance in the European Union for the period 2005-2014

Over time, the research has played a key role in the economic development reflected by the GDP growth, the increase of the patents' number, the volume of exports, the economic competitiveness of countries which have invested in research and development.The aim of this paper is to make a study at the level of the European Union's countries of the way that the size of the expenditures with the Research and Development and the number of patents reported at 1 million inhabitants, influences the Gross Domestic Product. In that respect, the research wants to verify the possibility of Romania to achieve the objective written in the Research, Development and Innovation Strategy 2014 to "reaching until year 2020 the critical mass of researchers needed to turn R&D a factor of economic growth through the provision of rapid and sustainable development, numerical and qualitative human resources in research, development and innovation" (R&D Strategy, 2014)

The relationship between quality of life and functionality in patients with schizophrenia – A preliminary report

This research aimed to investigate the relationship between quality of life and level of functioning in a group of Romanian patients with schizophrenia. A cross-sectional, observational, prospective study on 47 patients with schizophrenia was conducted. Socio-demographic and clinical data were documented and WHOQOL-BREF and Life Skills Profile-16 instruments were further administered. To examine the correlation between variables, Person correlation test was employed. The mean age of the sample was 38.32±12.32 years and 66% of the patients were males. Significant correlations were found between all aspects of the quality of life (physical health, psychological, social relationships and environmental health) and total score of LSP-16 (r=-0.426,

A Mania that is not Mania: A Case of Frontotemporal Dementia with Early Onset

The clinical picture of the behavioural variant of frontotemporal dementia can be very similar to a manic episode. Paying a careful attention to memory and attention problems and assessing the cognitive status of a patient with mania-like symptoms and no previous psychiatric history should be a standard procedure in order to distinguish mania from behavioural variant of frontotemporal dementia. Sometimes, imaging techniques are revealing important aspects that are essential for a correct diagnosis and treatment plan. Here, we present a case of frontotemporal dementia with early onset that had a manic like clinical presentation. Also, we shortly discuss the available pharmacological approaches and outline the importance of thorough differential diagnosis.</em

Opportunities for optimization of antipsychotic treatment

Universitatea de Stat de Medicină şi Farmacie „Nicolae Testemiţanu”, Chişinău, Republica MoldovaIntroducere. Există situații în care un antipsihotic înlocuit cu altul: a) lipsa de răspuns la terapie ; b) intoleranța la medicamente. Scopul lucrării. Elucidarea modului de schimbare a antipsihoticelor. Material și metode. Au fost studiate publicații științifice din ultimii 10 ani dedicate temei respective. Rezultate. Indicații principale pentru schimbarea antipsihoticului: a) răspunsul slab la terapie; b) efectele adverse intolerabile, asociate cu non-aderență la tratament; c) agravarea stării generale de sănătate; c) solicitarea unui alt antipsihotic de către pacienți. Una dintre metodele de schimbare a antipsihoticelor cu diferite proprietăți farmacologice este titrarea încrucișată. În timpul titrării încrucișate starea pacientului să se îmbunătățească semnificativ, dar se va opta pentru monoterapie. În cazul în care, transferul se face de la un antipsihotic la altul cu proprietăți receptorale similare, titrarea încrucișată poate fi efectuată în decurs de o săptămână. Concluzii. 1) Există particularități specifice de substituție a medicamentelor antipsihotice. 2) Titrarea încrucișată a dozelor permite evitarea efectelor secundare și crește aderența la tratament.Background. There are situations in which an antipsychotic is switching by another: a) lack of response to therapy; b) drug intolerance. Objective of the study. To elucidate the way of switching antipsychotics. Materials and methods. Scientific publications from the last 10 years dedicated to the respective theme were studied. Results. Main indications for switch the antipsychotic: a) poor response to therapy; b) intolerable adverse effects, associated with non-adherence to treatment; c) worsening of the general state of health; c) requesting another antipsychotic by patients. One of the methods of switching antipsychotics with different pharmacological properties is cross-titration. During cross-titration the patient’s condition should improve significantly, but we have to opt for monotherapy. If transferring from one antipsychotic to another with similar receptor properties, cross-titration can be performed within one week. Conclusions. 1) There are specific peculiarities of substitution of antipsychotic drugs. 2) Cross-titration of doses allows avoiding side effects and increases adherence to treatment

The Convergent Evolution of Romania’s Gross Domestic Product in Relation to the Average Macro-Economic Result of the European Union Countries

Romania's economic growth is a target that can be achieved only within the accordance of all the economic sectors with the Europe 2020 Strategy. As provided in the Convergence Programme 2014-2020, this objective entails a series of steps that Romania must rigorously follow in order to be able to ensure a real converge process at the level of developed European Union (EU) countries form the Euro Area. This paper aims an overview presentation of the economy synthetized in its major result, respectively in the dynamics of the total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) /capita and agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP) /capita, and it also compares with the level of the EU 28 average and the level of the Euro Area average. There are calculated, using linear and quadratic functions, the Gross Domestic Product GDP trends, and, with the convergence equation, there are calculated the years that separate Romania from the level of other countries, through the application of annual growth rates. The calculations result shows a strong economic boost of Romania, the annual growth rates being high, both for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) / capita (US$) and for agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP)/ capita (US$), but also a pretty big gap between its development level and the EU 28 and the Euro Area average level

Attachment and Coping in the Second Pandemic Year: The Impact on Loneliness and Emotional Distress

Pandemic restrictions and reduced social opportunities led to increased loneliness in affected countries. Considering that stressful situations activate the attachment system and engage various coping strategies, the present study explored the role of attachment dimensions and coping styles in perceived social isolation and the subsequent effect on emotional distress. Data were collected using an online survey between the third and fourth waves in Romania during the second year of the pandemic. Correlational analyses presented significant relationships between all variables measured. Regression analysis showed that attachment insecurity could predict up to half of the variance in loneliness and one-third of emotional distress. Coping styles that predicted both loneliness and emotional distress were problem-focused and socially supported coping, though the effect was minimal. Emotion-focused coping presented a protective role against loneliness. Finally, mediation analysis revealed how loneliness fully mediated the relationship between insecure attachment styles and emotional distress. Further implications for research on loneliness and pandemic resilience are discussed

Is Financial Information Influencing the Reporting on SDGs? Empirical Evidence from Central and Eastern European Chemical Companies

Since the adoption of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) endorsed by United Nations in 2015, which envision an ambitious representation of what the world could look like in the upcoming years, companies have been employing different approaches to identify and report on their contributions to the SDGs, albeit facing various difficulties due to the goals&rsquo; novelty, legislative deficiencies, and the complexity of connections between SDGs and business performance. In this context, the relationship between sustainability practices and firms&rsquo; financial performance has attracted much attention among researchers. Consequently, this research is focusing on determining to what extent the financial indicators disclosed in the annual reports are impacting the quality of non-financial reporting based on SDGs in the case of chemical companies operating in Central and Eastern European countries (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia), within the time frame of 2015&ndash;2019. To reach our objective, a score-based content analysis was applied to assess the measure of SDGs achievement, and subsequently, the SDG score was used in multiple linear regression models with several financial data-based independent variables. The main findings highlight the companies&rsquo; contribution to the SDGs, particularly to those addressing the environment and decent work conditions for employees, and suggest that the research and development costs and other intangibles represent the most influential variable in explaining the variation in the firms&rsquo; SDG score. Academics, businesses and legislative bodies may find these results valuable in their corresponding activities: theoretical, pragmatic or statutory