A review of abnormalities in the perception of visual illusions in schizophrenia

Specific abnormalities of vision in schizophrenia have been observed to affect high-level and some low-level integration mechanisms, suggesting that people with schizophrenia may experience anomalies across different stages in the visual system affecting either early or late processing or both. Here, we review the research into visual illusion perception in schizophrenia and the issues which previous research has faced. One general finding that emerged from the literature is that those with schizophrenia are mostly immune to the effects of high-level illusory displays, but this effect is not consistent across all low-level illusions. The present review suggests that this resistance is due to the weakening of top–down perceptual mechanisms and may be relevant to the understanding of symptoms of visual distortion rather than hallucinations as previously thought

The Diagnostic clinical Interview for Drug Withdrawal 1 (DID-W1) - New Symptoms of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI) or Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRI):inter-rater reliability

Aim. A wide range of clinical phenomena have been reported with dose reduction or drug discontinuation of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) or Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRIs). In 2015, a new classification of SSRIs/ SNRIs withdrawal (i.e., new withdrawal symptoms, rebound symptoms withdrawal, persistent post-withdrawal disorders) was outlined on the basis of the literature and clinical observations. A semistructured clinical interview, the Diagnostic clinical Interview for Drug Withdrawal 1-New Symptoms of SSRI and SNRI (DID-W1), was developed for identifying and differentiating such syndromes. Its inter-rater reliability has been tested. Methods. Seventeen consecutive outpatients with a history of SSRI or SNRI dose reduction or discontinuation were assessed independently by 2 clinicians at different times during the same day. Percent agreement, Cohen's kappa, and the squared correlation coefficient were used to measure inter-rater reliability. Results. The percent agreement for the whole interview was 97.06%, the Cohen's kappa 0.85 (95% CI of 0.61-1.08), the squared correlation coefficient 0.72. Discussion and conclusions. The kappa values indicated excellent inter-rater agreement. Validity evaluation and comparison with other instruments need to be performed. The DID-W1 may help diagnosing the clinical phenomena related to SSRI and SNRI discontinuation, their differentiation from relapse, and the potential iatrogenic origin of psychiatric symptoms in clinical practice

Concomitant use of simvastatin and amiodarone resulting in severe rhabdomyolysis a case report and review of the literature

Myopathy, including rhabdomyolysis, is a well-known, albeit rare complication of statin therapy. Predisposing factors include comorbidities and the concomitant use of cytochrome P-450 (CYP) 3A4 inhibitors. We report a case of severe simvastatin-induced rhabdomyolysis triggered by the addition of amiodarone to previously well-tolerated chronic statin therapy. Physicians should be aware of the risk of this potentially severe drug interaction. The dose of simvastatin should be reduced (to 20 mg daily) when concomitant treatment with amiodarone is required, or preference should be given to pravastatin, rosuvastatin or fluvastatin, which are not metabolised by the CYP 3A4

Diffusion tensor imaging in first degree relatives of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder patients

Objectives: White matter (WM) abnormalities are one of the most widely and consistently reported findings in schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BD). If these abnormalities are inherited determinants of illness, suitable to be classified as an endophenotype, relatives of patients must also have them at higher rate compared to the general population. In this review, we evaluate published diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies comparing first degree relatives of SZ and BD patients and healthy control subjects