Effects of lithium on rats' activity levels and on reaction to environmental stimulation

This research investigated the effects of different doses of lithium on rats' behavior in an attempt to understand lithium's therapeutic mechanism of action in major affective disorders.Although high doses (1.50 mEq/kg LiCl) decreased rats' open field activity, low doses (0.15 mEq/kg LiCl) increased activity, which is a new finding. A study of the effects of these two doses on reaction to environmental complexity and novelty suggested that, irrespective of dose, lithium increases readiness to engage in inspective exploration of a novel environment and promotes longer inspective exploration of a known complex environment. This was interpreted as increased selective attention to stimuli providing relevant information about the environment. The prediction derived from these findings, that both doses would decrease distractability, was supported in an experiment on tone-induced suppression of licking.A two factor (activity, selective attention) model of lithium's action was proposed and its relevance to lithium's clinical efficacy in major affective disorders was discussed

Recherche de l'information medicale sur le world wide web

The Internet has experienced tremendous growth over the past few years and has currently many resources in the field of medicine. However, many physicians remain unaware of how to gain access to this powerful tool. This article briefly describes the World Wide Web and its potential applications for physicians. The basics of web search engines and medical directories, as well as the use of advanced search with boolean operators are explained.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Recherche de l'information medicale sur le world wide web

The Internet has experienced tremendous growth over the past few years and has currently many resources in the field of medicine. However, many physicians remain unaware of how to gain access to this powerful tool. This article briefly describes the World Wide Web and its potential applications for physicians. The basics of web search engines and medical directories, as well as the use of advanced search with boolean operators are explained.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Meaning in life and mastery mediate the relationship of negative reminiscence with psychological distress among older adults with mild to moderate depressive symptoms

To understand the adaptive value of reminiscence, a mediational model of reminiscence was tested in a sample of older adults with mild to moderate depressive symptoms. Using structural equation modeling, we investigated if psychological resources (mastery and meaning in life) mediate the relation between reminiscence (positive: identity construction and problem solving; and negative: bitterness revival and boredom reduction) and psychological distress (depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms). A total of 202 older Dutch adults living in the community participated in this study. The present study consisted of baseline measurements of a randomized controlled trial that evaluated the effectiveness of a life-review therapy intervention on depression. Results showed that psychological resources fully mediated the relation between negative reminiscence and psychological distress. Specifically, negative reminiscing is related to decreased psychological distress through meaning in life and sense of mastery. The study contributes to current knowledge on the relation between reminiscence and mental health, both empirically and clinically. It helps to increase understanding of how reminiscence is related to psychological distress, especially in depressed older adults, and the relative importance of psychological resources, i.e., mastery and meaning in life. From a clinical perspective, these findings suggest the usefulness of focusing on strengthening psychological resources in therapeutic reminiscence-based strategies for older adults with depressive symptoms