A population sample comprised of 765 subjects (367 males and 398 females), in the age range of 15-81 years, completed the EMBU, a reliable questionnaire aimed at assessing experiences of parental rearing, and the TCI, a self-report questionnaire aimed at assessing dimensions of temperament and character. The study had three main aims: 1) to verify, on a larger scale, previous findings suggesting the occurrence of significant associations between experiences of parental rearing and aspects of temperament and character, 2) to assess possible variations in temperament and character in cohorts of subjects who have grown up in different historical epochs, and 3) to investigate to what extent transgenerational differences in parental rearing are detectable in different associations with various dimensions of personality. Several, albeit small, significant and meaningful associations between experiences of parental rearing and both temperament and character dimensions have been found, adding support to the robustness of previously reported results obtained in an independent smaller series. Also, several significant differences among subjects in different age groups have been found, both concerning temperament variables and character dimensions. Finally, the results show that associations between experiences of parental rearing and dimensions of temperament and character are most pronounced in subjects belonging to the youngest cohort and almost nil in the cohort comprising the oldest subjects.

We investigated hospitalization factors in acutely ill patients visited by psychiatrists at home. A series of 100 consecutive calls for psychiatric emergencies of a community mental health centre were investigated with a structured evaluation of psychiatric symptoms and aggressiveness (IEF, GAS, and VSAS). First order interactions were tested, and selected variables were tested with logistic regression analysis. Admission was significantly associated with GAS scores (low scores were found in 92.6% of admitted patients vs. 43.8% of patients not admitted), paranoid delusions (66.7 vs. 39.7%), and lack of social support (70.4 vs. 30.1%). Multivariate analysis confirmed a significant independent effect only for low GAS score and lack of social support. The study replicated some findings from research on hospitalization in emergency wards, while other factors, such as ’diagnosis’ and ’suicide risk’, were not significant.

A total of 28 long-term mentally ill patients, the majority schizophrenic, treated with cognitive therapy in the context of milieu-therapy and group therapy, were investigated at admission and discharge with regard to changes in symptomatology, quality of life, global functioning, need for medication, and perceived target complaints. The results showed a significant relief in perceived burden of illness and an improvement in quality of life. A better pre-admission functioning with regard to social functioning, occupational function, and symptoms predicted a more favourable outcome.

Since body dissatisfaction is an essential part of anorexia/bulimia nervosa, we wanted to assess the patient’s body experience before and after intensive treatment. Body experience was studied in 290 eating disorder patients, admitted to a specialised unit, after six months and again after one year using the Body Attitude Test (BAT), the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI), and the Eating Disorder Evaluation Scale (EDES). The clearly negative body experience of eating disorder patients evolved in a positive way after therapy and this improvement lasted for up to one year after admission. EDI scores and Body Mass Index at the time of admission appeared to be the strongest predictors of the total BAT score at follow-up. Athough body dissatisfaction can be quite persistent in eating disorders, intensive treatment can substantially improve the patient’s body experience.

A high prevalence of thyroid hypofunction has been found in bipolar patients. However, the samples used in previous studies included a high percentage of patients in treatment with lithium and carbamazepine. Since the use of these drugs may explain the high prevalence of thyroid disturbances found in bipolar patients, we designed the present study to assess thyroid function in a sample of bipolar patients who had not been treated previously with lithium or carbamazepine. Patients included in the sample met Research Diagnostic Criteria for bipolar affective disorder. Assessment included determination of serum levels for total tyroxine (T4), total triiodothyronine (T3), and thyrotropin both basally and in response to infusion of 500 mg of Protilerin. The rate of thyroid hypofunction in the total sample (9.2%) was considerably lower than that reported in other studies with bipolar patients undergoing lithium therapy. Five patients (9.2%) showed some thyroid hyperfuncion parameter. Our results do not show significant differences in thyroid function indices between long-term and short-term duration of illness, between outpatients and inpatients, between high and low number of episodes, and between rapid- and non-rapid-cycling cases. Comparison between bipolar I and bipolar II patients shows a statistically significant difference in the values of TSH levels, with the bipolar II group having a higher mean value. Our data suggest that thyroid dysfunction is not related to gender, duration of illness, number of episodes, or rapid-cycling course of illness. The higher TRH-stimulated TSH levels in the bipolar II group could be considered a differential biological feature.

Epidemiological studies, animal studies, and clinical studies yielded conflicting results concerning a supposed association between increased risk for suicide and violence, and low serum cholesterol levels. Until now, no data has been available for patients with schizophrenia, a disorder with a well-known increased risk of violence. Correlations of serum cholesterol levels at admission and measures of violence were investigated in 103 consecutively admitted patients (44 males, 59 females) of a general psychiatric admission unit. Seventy subjects were diagnosed as suffering from schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (ICD-10 F 20, F25), and 33 were diagnosed as suffering from non-psychotic disorders (mainly personality disorders). The level of total exhibited violence during the inpatient treatment period was measured in each patient by the Modified Overt Aggression Scale (MOAS), the Social Dysfunction and Aggression Scale (SDAS), the Staff Observation Aggression Scale (SOAS), and the Violence Scale (VS). Correlations of all violence measures were high (0.75–0.90), but no correlation was found with cholesterol levels, neither for psychotic nor for non-psychotic subjects, neither for men nor for women. The hypothesis of associations of violence and cholesterol levels is not supported by the data.

In order to test the hypothesis that an excess of summer births is a risk factor for deficit syndrome, the month of birth was studied in 53 deficit schizophrenic patients compared to 158 non-deficit patients. No significant difference in terms of month of birth or season of birth was observed between deficit and non-deficit patients, suggesting that summer births might not be a risk factor for deficit schizophrenia.

A high frequency of sexual dysfunction occurs in treated and untreated patients with schizophrenia. Unfortunately, no effective therapy for this problem is currently available. We present a case of a 26-year-old patient with paranoid schizophrenia, who suffered from lack of desire and erection, and was successfully treated with sildenafil citrate (Viagra). This case illustrates the complex character of sexual dysfunction in male schizophrenic patients.

The atypical antipsychotic drug olanzapine has been proposed for treatment of dopaminergic psychosis in Parkinson's disease (PD). We report on a 68-year-old patient who developed a severe akinetic-rigid extrapyramidal syndrome, accompanied by additional paranoid symptoms, following olanzapine treatment of optic hallucinosis in PD. Olanzapine may also induce clinically relevant extrapyramidal side effects in PD patients.

We report the case of a patient with a history of zolpidem dependence. The patient, after a stressful life event, started using zolpidem. She rapidly developed tolerance and dependence, taking 50-100 mg, and sometimes up to 300 mg, of zolpidem daily. Also, our patient suffered episodes of altered consciousness, accompanied by visual hallucinations.

We report the case of a patient suffering from dysthymia. He underwent successful ECT treatment and was medicated with nefazodone and midazolam. Comparing the EEG and motor seizure duration in the periods with and without midazolam, no significant differences were recorded, but the dosage of thiopental and of succinylcholine had to be increased markedly after midazolam was discontinued (P < 0.05; ANOVA). This case indicates a substantial pharmacodynamic interaction between nefazodone, midazolam, thiopental, and succinylcholine.