Current Psychiatry Research and Reviews - Volume 20, Issue 1, 2024

Havana syndrome cases increased in Cuba at the end of 2016 and early 2017, and the consequences ranged from minor to severe health concerns. In almost all affected individuals, symptoms like difficulty-concentrating, visual issues, brain-fog, memory problems, tinnitus, and sleep-related complaints were reported. Some initial studies pointed the causative possibility towards energy weapons, ultrasound, microwaves, microbes and chemicals. However, to date, no study has provided a comprehensive explanation of this sudden mysterious syndrome, and the root cause remains unexplained.

Autism, a neurodevelopment disorder that was regarded as insignificant in the past is thereby now recognized as a major problem with an increasing prevalence over the past 50 years affecting 1 out of every 160 children worldwide. Recent accumulating evidence indicates that autism is a consequence of the fusion of environmental, genetic, and epigenetic components. Due to the lack of effective pharmacotherapy, alternative approaches are being explored for their beneficial effect on autistic symptoms. A literature review was performed identifying previously published clinical studies that were set up as an alternative therapy for alleviating the symptoms of autism. The data were collected from PubMed and Google Scholar databases. A total of 13 kinds of interventions including video modelling, play therapy, music therapy, yoga, social skills training, sensory integration (SIT), scalp acupuncture, medical clowning, animal-assisted activity, theatre-based intervention, Tai Chu Chuan training, novel mattress technology, and magnetic resonance imaging were found to be affecting the symptoms associated with autism. From sufficient clinical evidence, it was estimated that alternative approaches such as music therapy and play therapy have the most beneficial effect in mitigating the symptoms to an extent.

Objective: The aim of the study was to investigate the level of anxiety as well as the attitude toward disease and mitigation strategies in people with non-psychotic mental disorders and healthy controls. Methods: A case-control study (1:4) was conducted during a self-isolation regimen in Moscow. Cases were adult patients with NPMD admitted to the Moscow Research and Clinical Center for Neuropsychiatry. Sex and age-matched controls (individuals who have never sought psychiatric help) were selected from a cohort of 7498 Moscow residents who participated in a large cross-sectional survey delivered via social networks and popular Russian web platforms. Fisher's exact test, Mann-Whitney U test, and General linear modelling were used as statistic methods. Results: In the univariate analysis, patients with NPMD had a lower level of education and were less likely to be married. The level of the trait but not state anxiety was higher in people with NPMD. People with mental disorders were significantly more often concerned about the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their lives, were more likely to be confident that they would contract the coronavirus and their disease would be severe, showed suboptimal adherence to mitigation strategies, were dissatisfied with the amount of information they received about the COVID-19 disease, and were more concerned about becoming a victim of domestic violence. Marital status, education, use of information resources, dissatisfaction with information about COVID-19, use of public transport, paying attention to the need of others and domestic violence assessment remained significant in the general linear model. All the factors included in the multivariate model accounted for 36.4% of the variance. Conclusion: People with NPMD have a higher level of trait anxiety and are prompted to develop a constellation of maladaptive beliefs toward a pandemic. These beliefs, along with the lack of reliable information on coronavirus infection, can lead to misunderstanding and disregard of sanitary and self-isolation recommendations. Educational programs and vaccination campaigns should be sensitive to these features of people with NPMD.

Background: Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neuropsychiatric disorders in children. Increasing evidence suggests an association between omega-3 fatty acid and ADHD. We aimed to investigate the effects of 6-month omega- 3 fatty acid supplementation on the fatty-acid profile of erythrocytes and on the clinical severity of ADHD symptoms in children. Methods: Recruitment included 32 children aged 6-14 years diagnosed with ADHD at the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Department at Ziv Medical Center, Israel. Intervention included refrigerated omega-3 fatty acid supplementation normalized to body weight. Blood samples were taken at baseline, 3 and 6 months after intervention for quantification of fatty acids from erythrocyte membranes. ADHD symptoms were assessed by parents and teachers according to the ADHD Rating-Scale and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. ADHD severity was additionally assessed by a psychiatrist according to the Clinical Global Impressions Scale. Results: Supplementation of omega-3 fatty acid in children with ADHD raised their omega-3 index statistically significantly from an average of 4.4% omega-3 index at baseline to 11.6% after 6 months and had beneficial effects on ADHD symptoms, as measured by validated questionnaires and in accordance with a pediatric psychiatrist examination. Conclusion: Our pilot study showed that dietary supplementation of omega-3 fatty acid increased the blood omega-3 index levels and improved ADHD symptoms even at the midpoint of 3 months.

Background: The development of mobile Internet technology has brought great changes and convenience in our daily life. However, it has also arisen a series of mental health problems, especially problematic mobile phone use (PMPU). Objective: This study aimed to explore the relationship between social exclusion and PMPU among Chinese college students, as well as the mediating role of basic psychological needs satisfaction (BPNS). Methods: We recruited a total of 340 participants (mean age 19.71, 44.7% males) from a university in China by convenience sampling. All of them completed the self-report tests of the Social Exclusion Scale, BPNS Scale and Mobile Phone Addiction Index Scale. Data analysis was performed in SPSS 23.0, using the PROCESS macro to examine the mediating effect. Results: Social exclusion was significantly positively correlated with PMPU (r = 0.22, p < 0.001), and significantly negatively correlated with BPNS (r = -0.66, p < 0.001), and BPNS was significantly negatively correlated with PMPU (p = -0.24, p < 0.001). BPNS played a mediating role in the relationship between social exclusion and PMPU. In addition, autonomy needs and competence needs mediated the link of such a relationship, whereas the mediating role of relatedness needs was not significant. Conclusion: Results showed that social exclusion was closely related to PMPU, and social exclusion affected PMPU through BPNS. These findings underline the important role of social relationship and BPNS on adolescents' PMPU.

Introduction: Lithium is an effective mood stabilizer. In patients with bipolar disorder using long-term lithium, discontinuation of lithium can lead to severe clinical outcomes such as lithium-induced discontinuation refractoriness. We present two clinical cases of lithium- induced discontinuation refractoriness. Case Presentation: We present two female patients with a good long-term response to lithium. Both patients did not have a mood episode for many years and had residual symptoms. The first patient discontinued lithium voluntarily, while the second patient discontinued lithium treatment due to impaired thyroid function. Lithium was added to the treatment of both patients, but lithium-induced discontinuation refractoriness developed. Conclusion: It should be kept in mind that it may develop refractoriness to lithium when deciding to discontinue lithium treatment, especially in patients with a good long-term response to lithium.

Background: Organic disorder remains one of the most pressing issues in practical psychiatry, especially a disorder dominated by persistent or recurrent delusions. The difficulty for practitioners is often due to the older age of patients and the burden of concomitant therapeutic diseases. Modern and potentially promising pharmacological drugs developed in recent years include partial agonists of D2 and D3 receptors. Currently, there are insufficient publications of studies on Cariprazine use in various disorders that are not associated with endogenous pathology. Case Presentation: The author presented the results of the patient’s clinical examination with a complex of psychodiagnostic techniques, instrumental research methods, observation data in the department, and an analysis of the patient’s medical history. The paper describes the experience of treating a patient with the latest generation antipsychotic drug Cariprazine. Results: The author presents a case report on Cariprazine therapy in a 71-year-old female patient with a persistent organic delusional disorder with concomitant severe somatic illness. Conclusion: Cariprazine showed good efficacy in this case. Delusional symptoms were significantly reduced, and the author noted a reduction in negative symptoms. Mild side effects of the drug quickly resolved in the course of treatment. The key point is that the description of this case may be relevant to justify the need for further clinical studies on Cariprazine. Further clinical studies of the drug in the treatment of various mental pathologies may be in demand by specialists around the world.