The American journal of psychiatry
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Review Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Regional deficits in brain volume in schizophrenia: a meta-analysis of voxel-based morphometry studies.
Voxel-based morphometry is a method for detecting group differences in the density or volume of brain matter. The authors reviewed the literature on use of voxel-based morphometry in schizophrenia imaging research to examine the capabilities of this method for clearly identifying specific structural differences in patients with schizophrenia, compared with healthy subjects. The authors looked for consistently reported results of relative deficits in gray and white matter in schizophrenia and evaluated voxel-based morphometry methods in order to propose a future strategy for using voxel-based morphometry in schizophrenia research. ⋯ This review implicates the left superior temporal gyrus and the left medial temporal lobe as key regions of structural difference in patients with schizophrenia, compared to healthy subjects. The diversity of regions reported in voxel-based morphometry studies is in part related to the choice of variables in the automated process, such as smoothing kernel size and linear versus affine transformation, as well as to differences in patient groups. Voxel-based morphometry can be used as an exploratory whole-brain approach to identify abnormal brain regions in schizophrenia, which should then be validated by using region-of-interest analyses.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Video testimony of long-term hospitalized psychiatrically ill Holocaust survivors.
Many Holocaust survivors who have both psychotic disorders and residual symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) remain chronically hospitalized in psychiatric institutions. This study investigated the clinical benefits of a therapeutic process facilitating a detailed videotaped account of traumatic experience (testimony method) in elderly long-term hospitalized Holocaust survivors. ⋯ Study observations suggest clinical benefits of the testimony method in the alleviation of many posttraumatic symptoms, but not psychosis, in a cohort of psychiatrically ill Holocaust survivors, despite an interval of as many as 60 years since the traumatic events. The findings have implications for care and rehabilitation of patients many years after acute traumatic events.
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The authors sought to evaluate patterns and predictors of relapse among women with eating disorders. ⋯ These results may explain the long-term efficacy of interpersonal therapy for bulimia nervosa and suggest that focused body image work during relapse prevention may enhance long-term recovery from eating disorders.
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Most studies focusing on risk factors for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have used retrospective study designs. Only a small number of studies have prospectively examined risk factors in the immediate aftermath of trauma exposure in predicting PTSD symptoms. The purpose of this study was to identify predictive risk factors for posttraumatic stress symptoms and comorbid psychopathological symptoms present during the time before exposure to traumatic stress in a high-risk population. ⋯ These results suggest that specific personality traits may constitute markers of vulnerability to the development of psychopathological symptoms after trauma exposure. Early identification of preexisting risk factors is needed to provide effective prevention and intervention for individuals who are at risk of developing trauma-related disorders.