Age of onset of Cannabis use and cognitive function in first-episode non-affective psychosis patients: Outcome at three-year follow-up
In recent years, the effects of cannabis use on cognitive functions in patients with psychosis have been widely studied. Recently, special emphasis has been placed on the impact of age at the onset of consumption on cognition in these patients.349 patients with a first episode of non-affective psychosis were studied. Patients were classified as cannabis users and non-users. Users were divided, according to their age when they began using cannabis, into: early-onset (age 16) and late-onset (age ≥ 16) users. Differences between groups at baseline were studied based on sociodemographic, clinical, and cognitive variables. The groups were longitudinally (3-year) compared on cognitive variables.…
Staging, neurocognition and social functioning in bipolar disorder.
Introduction: Bipolar disorder (BD) is associated with significant neurocognitive and functional impairment, which may progress across stages. The ‘latent stage' of BD remains understudied. This cross-sectional study assessed staging, neurocognition and social functioning among BD patients and their healthy siblings.Methods: Four groups were included: euthymic type I BD patients in the early (n = 25) and late (n = 23) stages, their healthy siblings (latent stage; n = 23) and healthy controls (n = 21). All 92 subjects underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological battery of processing speed, verbal learning/memory, visual memory, working memory, verbal fluency, executive cognition, and motor …
Grip Strength, Neurocognition, and Social Functioning in People WithType-2 Diabetes Mellitus, Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, and Schizophrenia
[Background] Frailty is a common syndrome among older adults and patients with several comorbidities. Grip strength (GS) is a representative parameter of frailty because it is a valid indicator of current and long-term physical conditions in the general population and patients with severe mental illnesses (SMIs). Physical and cognitive capacities of people with SMIs are usually impaired; however, their relationship with frailty or social functioning have not been studied to date. The current study aimed to determine if GS is a valid predictor of changes in cognitive performance and social functioning in patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus and SMIs.
Is processing speed a valid neurocognitive endophenotype in bipolar disorder? Evidence from a longitudinal, family study.
[Background] Substantial evidence supports the existence of neurocognitive endophenotypes in bipolar disorder (BD), but very few longitudinal studies have included unaffected relatives. In a 5-year, follow-up, family study, we have recently suggested that deficits in manual motor speed and visual memory could be endophenotype candidates for BD. We aimed to explore whether this also applies to processing speed.
Cannabis use in male and female first episode of non-affective psychosis patients: long-term clinical, neuropsychological and functional differences
BACKGROUND: Numerous studies show the existence of a high prevalence of cannabis use among patients with psychosis. However, the differences between men and women who debut with a first episode of psychosis (FEP) regarding cannabis use have not been largely explored. The aim of this study was to identify the specific sex factors and differences in clinical evolution associated with cannabis use. METHOD: Sociodemographic characteristics at baseline were considered in our sample of FEP patients to find differences depending on sex and the use of cannabis. Clinical, functional and neurocognitive variables at baseline, 1-year, and 3-years follow-up were also explored. RESULTS: A total of 549 pa…
Functional remediation for patients with bipolar II disorder: improvement of functioning and subsyndromal symptoms.
Recently, Functional Remediation (FR) has proven to be effective in improving the functional outcome of euthymic bipolar patients. The aim of this study was to test the efficacy of the FR program in a subsample of euthymic bipolar II patients (BPII). A post-hoc analyses were undertaken using data of 53 BPII outpatients who had participated in a multicenter, rater-blind, randomized, controlled trial exploring the efficacy of FR (n=17) as compared with a Psychoeducation group (PSY) (n=19) and a treatment as usual control group (TAU n=17). The primary outcome variable was the functional improvement defined as the mean change in the Functioning Assessment Short Test (FAST) from baseline to endp…
Manual motor speed dysfunction as a neurocognitive endophenotype in euthymic bipolar disorder patients and their healthy relatives. Evidence from a 5-year follow-up study
Background: Few studies have examined Manual Motor Speed (MMS) in bipolar disorder (BD). The aim of this longitudinal, family study was to explore whether dysfunctional MMS represents a neurocognitive endophenotype of BD. Methods: A sample of 291 subjects, including 131 BD patients, 77 healthy first-degree relatives (BD-Rel), and 83 genetically-unrelated healthy controls (HC), was assessed with the Finger-Tapping Test (En) on three occasions over a 5-year period. Dependence of FTT on participants' age was removed by means of a lineal model of HC samples, while correcting simultaneously the time and learning effect. Differences between groups were evaluated with an ANOVA test. Results: The p…
Factors associated with poor functional outcome in bipolar disorder: sociodemographic, clinical, and neurocognitive variables.
Objective: The current investigation aimed at studying the sociodemographic, clinical, and neuropsychological variables related to functional outcome in a sample of euthymic patients with bipolar disorder(BD) presenting moderate-severe levels of functional impairment. Methods: Two-hundred and thirty-nine participants with BD disorders and with Functioning Assessment Short Test(FAST) scores equal or above 18 were administered a clinical and diagnostic interview, and the administration of mood measure scales and a comprehensive neuropsychological battery. Analyses involved preliminary Pearson bivariate correlations to identify sociodemographic and clinical variables associated with the FAST t…
Education and long-term outcomes in first episode psychosis: 10-year follow-up study of the PAFIP cohort
[Background] Lower levels of education have been associated with the development of psychosis. Investigating educational achievement in the first episode of psychosis (FEP) patients may shed light on the origins of the alterations and on the variability of outcomes in psychotic disorders.
Effects of functional remediation on neurocognitively impaired bipolar patients: enhancement of verbal memory
BackgroundFunctional remediation is a novel intervention with demonstrated efficacy at improving functional outcome in euthymic bipolar patients. However, in a previous trial no significant changes in neurocognitive measures were detected. The objective of the present analysis was to test the efficacy of this therapy in the enhancement of neuropsychological functions in a subgroup of neurocognitively impaired bipolar patients.MethodA total of 188 out of 239 DSM-IV euthymic bipolar patients performing below two standard deviations from the mean of normative data in any neurocognitive test were included in this subanalysis. Repeated-measures analyses of variance were conducted to assess the i…
Transdiagnostic neurocognitive deficits in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia: A 1-year follow-up study
AbstractBackgroundImpairments in neurocognition are critical factors in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), and schizophrenia (SZ), and also in those with somatic diseases such as type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Intriguingly, these severe mental illnesses are associated with an increased co-occurrence of diabetes (direct comorbidity). This study sought to investigate the neurocognition and social functioning across T2DM, MDD, BD, and SZ using a transdiagnostic and longitudinal approach.MethodsA total of 165 subjects, including 30 with SZ, 42 with BD, 35 with MDD, 30 with T2DM, and 28 healthy controls (HC), were assessed twice at a 1-year interval using a c…
Visual memory dysfunction as a neurocognitive endophenotype in bipolar disorder patients and their unaffected relatives. Evidence from a 5-year follow-up Valencia study.
BACKGROUND: Scarce research has focused on Visual Memory (VM) deficits as a possible neurocognitive endophenotype of bipolar disorder (BD). The main aim of this longitudinal, family study with healthy controls was to explore whether VM dysfunction represents a neurocognitive endophenotype of BD. METHODS: Assessment of VM by Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (ROCF) was carried out on a sample of 317 subjects, including 140 patients with BD, 60 unaffected first-degree relatives (BD-Rel), and 117 genetically-unrelated healthy controls (HC), on three occasions over a 5-year period (T1, T2, and T3). BD-Rel group scores were analyzed only at T1 and T2. RESULTS: Performance of BD patients was sig…
Motor and Cognitive Performance in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis with Minimal Hepatic Encephalopathy
Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) is associated with mild cognitive impairment and frailty. This study aims to identify cognitive and motor differences in cirrhotic patients with and without MHE, and the correlations between motor signs and cognitive performance. Gait, balance, hand strength and motor speed performance were evaluated in 66 cirrhotic patients (38 without and 28 with MHE, according to the Psychometric Hepatic Encephalopathy Score (PHES). Cognitive performance was measured with the Mini-Mental State Examination, Verbal Fluency Test, Aprendizaje Verbal España-Complutense Test (TAVEC), Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale III, Hamilton Depression and Anxiety Rating Scale and Fun…
Do patients with bipolar disorder and subsyndromal symptoms benefit from functional remediation? A 12-month follow-up study
We analyzed the efficacy of functional remediation, in a sample of patients with bipolar disorder who presented with subsyndromal symptoms. From a total sample of 239 patients with bipolar I and II disorder, according to DSM-IV-TR diagnostic criteria, entering a randomized clinical trial, those patients who presented with subsyndromal symptoms were selected based on a method already described by Berk and colleagues was applied. It consists of using the Clinical Global Impression-Bipolar version (CGI-BP) to establish the scores of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) and of the Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS) that correspond with 1 in the CGI-BP. Functional outcome and mood symptoms …