Cognitive deficit is a consequence of organic lesions of the central nervous system. Activation of neuroplasticity is a way of effective treatment. There is a suppose that the autonomic nervous system (ANS) involves in the regulation of neuroplasticity.

We developed a technology for non-invasive electrical stimulate segmental and suprasegmental parts of ANS [1].

Developed technology is implemented in the “SYMPATHOCOR–01” device. The device produces spatially distributed field of current pulses between two multiple electrodes located on the neck. The targets of impact are cervical ganglia of the sympathetic trunk and vagus nerve.

The restoration of blood supply in artificial ischemia calf muscles and recovery of behavior patterns during acute phase of the adjustment disorder were received as a result of application technology in experiments on rats [2]. An increase global neurometabolic activity on SPECT was shown in clinical studies [2]. Application device for two weeks in children with ADHD led to reduction of inattention and hyperactivity symptoms [2].

We suggest that the demonstrated clinical effects are the results of activate of neuroplasticity by impact on ANS structures. It is necessary to conduct fundamental studies by means of neurovisualization methods (fMRI, PET) for the confirmation action of these mechanisms.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

The sudden and large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused significant stress not only in Ukrainians but also in citizens of countries which have received the largest numbers of refugees.

The aim of the current study was to identify stress, resilience, and self-efficacy levels, as well as to examine the relationships between these variables, in a sample of women from Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, and Romania during the third month of Russian aggression on Ukraine.

The study involved measuring a sample of Ukrainian (N = 82), Polish (N = 102), Slovak (N = 79), and Romanian (N = 42) women using the Perception of Stress Questionnaire, the Brief Resilience Scale, and the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale in May 2022.

The results showed that during the third month of Russian aggression on Ukraine, stress levels and its components (emotional tension, external stress, and intrapsychic stress) were the highest among Ukrainian women and the lowest among Polish women. The sense of self-efficacy was the lowest among Ukrainian women and highest among Polish women, while resilience was the lowest among Ukrainian women and the highest among Slovak women.

Women from Ukraine reported being in the worst mental state compared to the rest of the sample. Moreover, a path analysis of the measured variables points to a multifaceted relationship between stress, resilience, and self-efficacy among women from Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, and Romania during the third month of the Russian invasion.

None Declared

The Coronavirus pandemic has originated unprecedented sanitary control measures that have conditioned people’s lifestyles and habits. Little is known about the impact of such measures, especially the most restrictive, on recent and growing phenomena such as exercise addiction, use of enhancement drugs, and Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD).

The objective was to investigate the above-mentioned phenomena during COVID-19 pandemic and how they relate.

The sample consisted of 3161 participants (65% women), from Portugal (11%), Italy (41%), Spain (16%), the UK (12%), Lithuania (12%), Japan (6%), and Hungary (4%). Mean age was 35.05 (SD = 12.10). Participants responded online to the Exercise Addiction Inventory (EAI), the Appearance Anxiety Inventory (AAI), and questions about use of enhancement drugs.

4.3% of the participants scored above the cut-off point of the EAI, with higher values registered in the UK and Spain. Exercise addiction was higher among men. Appearance anxiety and body satisfaction problems were found in participants of all participating countries, with 15.2% scoring over the cut-off point for BDD. Higher numbers of those at risk of BDD were found in Italy, Japan, and Portugal. About 29% reported the use of fitness supplements to make them look better, with 6.4% starting a new use during the lockdown. Change in supplements use and exercise are predicted by EAI scores. Change in mental health is predicted by AAI scores.

This study helps to shed light on how COVID-19 lookdown induced behavioral changes and how they affect physical and mental health-related aspects in different countries.

Severe behavioural problems (SBPs) in childhood are highly prevalent, impair functioning, and predict negative outcomes later in life. Over the last decade, clinical practice guidelines for SBPs have been developed across Europe to facilitate the translation of scientific evidence into clinical practice. This study outlines the results of an investigation into academic experts’ perspectives on the current prevalence, implementation, and utility of clinical guidelines for SBPs in children aged 6–12 across Europe.

An online semi-structured questionnaire was completed by 28 psychiatry and psychology experts from 23 countries.

Experts indicated that approximately two thirds of the included European countries use at least an unofficial clinical document such as textbooks, while nearly half possess official guidelines for SBPs. Experts believed that, although useful for practice, guidelines’ benefits would be maximised if they included more specific recommendations and were implemented more conscientiously. Similarly, experts suggested that unofficial clinical documents offer a wide range of treatment options to individualise treatment from. However, they stressed the need for more consistent, evidence-based clinical practices, by means of developing national and European clinical guidelines for SBPs.

This study offers a preliminary insight into the current successes and challenges perceived by experts around Europe associated with guidelines and documents for SBPs, acting as a stepping stone for future systematic, in-depth investigations of guidelines. Additionally, it establishes experts’ consensus for the need to develop official guidelines better tailored to clinical practice, creating a momentum for a transition towards European clinical guidelines for this population.

Poor adherence to antipsychotic drugs is a major problem in schizophrenia management and one of the most important risk factors for relapse and hospitalization. To date, there is little evidence on persistence predictors with long-acting injectable antipsychotics, especially with aripiprazole once-monthly (AOM). This study (NCT03130478) aimed to describe the impact of demographic and clinical characteristics on persistence with AOM treatment in real-world setting.

This was an observational, retrospective, non-interventional study that included adult patients with schizophrenia who were initiated on AOM during a schizophrenia-related hospitalization. Data were retrospectively collected from patients’ medical records. The primary variable was persistence with AOM, measured as the number of days from AOM initiation up to all-cause AOM discontinuation during the first six months after treatment index.

140 patients were enrolled and 91 fulfilled the selection criteria. Six months after AOM initiation, 65 (71.4%) patients were still receiving AOM treatment, whereas 26 (28.6%) were not. The mean (standard deviation) time to AOM treatment discontinuation in the first six months was 138.1 (6.8) days, with most of the patients discontinuing at the first 28 days. The risk of AOM discontinuation in the first six months increases 1.05-fold annually since schizophrenia diagnosis (p=0.003); moreover, this risk increases 2.86-fold in patients with concomitant schizophrenia medication at AOM initiation compared to patients without concomitant schizophrenia treatments (p=0.02).

Main factors predicting persistence with AOM treatment at six months in clinical practice are fewer years since schizophrenia diagnosis and not receiving concomitant schizophrenia treatments at AOM initiation.

GXR, a selective α2A-adrenergic agonist, is a non-stimulant treatment for ADHD (approved in the USA for children and adolescents and in Canada for children).

To assess the efficacy (symptoms and function) and safety of dose-optimized GXR compared with placebo in children and adolescents with ADHD.

To evaluate the efficacy (symptom and function) and safety of GXR for the treatment of ADHD. An atomoxetine (ATX) arm was included to provide reference data against placebo (NCT01244490).

Patients (6–17 years) were randomly assigned at baseline to dose-optimized GXR (6–12 years, 1–4 mg/day; 13–17 years, 1–7 mg/day), ATX (10–100mg/day) or placebo for 4 or 7 weeks. The primary efficacy measure is change from baseline in ADHD-Rating Scale-version IV (ADHD-RS-IV). Key secondary measures were defined as Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement (CGI-I) and the Weiss Functional Impairment Rating Scale-Parent (WFIRS-P). Safety assessments included treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs), electrocardiograms, and vital signs.

Of 338 patients randomized, 272 (80.5%) completed the study. Placebo-adjusted differences in least squares (LS) mean in ADHD-RS-IV total score, percent improvement versus placebo for CGI-I, placebo-adjusted differences in LS mean change from baseline in WFIRS-P score (family and learning and school domains) are shown in the Table. The most common TEAEs for GXR were somnolence, headache, and fatigue; 8 (7%) TEAEs were severe.

GXR was effective and well tolerated in children and adolescents with ADHD.

Various nanoparticles are produced with development of nanotechnology; however, the safety is not confirmed precisely at present. Influence on brain of offspring that exposed to various nanoparticles (titanium dioxide; TiO2, carbon black, carbon nanotube, fullerene; C60 and nanoparticles from diesel engine; DEP) in fetal period was examined pathologically.

Brains from ICR mice born from each nanoparticle-exposed and normal mothers were examined under light and electron microscope. To detect apoptosis, immunohistochemical staining for caspase-3 was performed, and to detect metal particle (TiO2) transferred from mother to the fetus, brains of offspring were observed by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The storage of abnormal structures (amyloid β and phosphorylayed tau), which are characteristic of neurodegenerative diseases, was detected with immunohistochemical staining.

All mice with nanoparticles exposure showed swelling of astrocytes' endfoot, apoptosis of endothelial cells. In brain of TiO2-exposed groups, EDS detected TiO2. Many apoptosis and storage of abnormal structures were showed in characteristic parts of brain. Some capillaries were stenosis and the neighboring parenchyma had degenerative changes.

These findings indicate that nanoparticles transferred from pregnant mice has a severe impact on fetal brain, carries the multiple infarctions and atrophy, a great risk of dementia in offspring. Moreover, appearance of apoptosis and abnormal structures may relate to some mental neurological disorders. Our result should be a grave warning that nonparticles exposure is one of risk factors on neurological diseases, in which various psychic symptoms occur.

To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of once-daily quetiapine XR adjunctive to antidepressant therapy versus antidepressant alone in patients with MDD showing an inadequate response to antidepressant treatment (mainly SSRIs/SNRIs).

6-week, multicentre, double-blind, parallel-group study (D1448C00007). Patients were randomised to receive quetiapine XR 150mg/day (n=167), 300mg/day (n=163) or placebo (n=163) as add-on to maintained antidepressant treatment. Primary endpoint: baseline to Week 6 change in MADRS total score. Secondary variables included: baseline to Week 1 change in MADRS total score; baseline to Week 6 change in HAM-A total and psychic anxiety subscale scores. Safety assessments included AE reporting.

Mean change in MADRS total score (overall baseline mean, 28.4) from baseline to Week 6 was significant (p<0.01) for quetiapine XR 150mg/day (-15.26) and 300mg/day (-14.94) versus placebo (-12.21). Separation from placebo in MADRS total score was apparent from Week 1 for both quetiapine doses (p<0.001).

At Week 6, mean change from baseline in HAM-A total score (overall baseline mean, 20.8) was significant for quetiapine XR 150mg/day (-10.27, p<0.01) and 300mg/day (-9.70, p<0.05) versus placebo (-7.92). Mean change from baseline in HAM-A psychic anxiety subscale score (overall baseline mean, 12.83) was significant with quetiapine XR 150mg/day (-6.82, p<0.001) and 300mg/day (-6.47, p<0.01) versus placebo (-5.11).

Most common AEs (>10%) were dry mouth, somnolence, fatigue, sedation, constipation and dizziness with quetiapine XR.

In patients with MDD with an inadequate response to antidepressant treatment, adjunctive quetiapine XR 150mg/day and 300mg/day was well tolerated and effective at reducing depressive and anxiety symptoms.

Previous studies showed associations of stress and episodes of active disease [1,2]. We reported survey data on psychosocial problems of IBD patients [3]. This study investigates associations of stress with health impairments and analyses a scale of perceived stress as an indicator for psychosocial impairments (construct/criterion validity) [4].

In a multiregional German survey in 2005, 1083 patients with Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis were recruited (gastroenterological practices, university outpatient clinics, patient organization). The questionnaire incorporated WHO's ICF [5] and established items and scales (i.a. HADS [6]). Scale construction followed item response theory analysing psychometric properties.

Of the survey responders (58% CD, 65% female, mean age 42yrs), ⅓ reported severe fatigue. Clinically relevant anxiety was observed in 24%, depression in 29% of men and 21% of women. With three items we constructed a scale with good psychometric properties. Three groups (low, moderate, high perceived stress) were identified, differing substantially in reported anxiety/depression and the GIBDI disease activity score.

IBD patients report multiple psychosocial impairments. The scale of perceived stress may identify IBD patients with high demand for psychosocial attendance, if confirmed in independent samples. For enhanced secondary prevention [7] we propose integration of this psychosocial indicator into the diagnostic process.