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Abstract Introduction Autoimmune disorders have become increasingly acknowledged as having a more causative role in encephalitis than previously assumed. Anti-N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor encephalitis seems to be the most prevalent disorder. Symptoms of the neuropsychiatric phase in children and adolescents include abnormal behavior, seizures, and neurologic symptoms. We present a report on a teenage girl with predominantly psychiatric symptoms, highlighting the need for awareness of the disease and multidisciplinary collaboration. Case presentation Our patient, a 17-year-old girl of Middle Eastern origin, had no earlier medical history, but a family history of autoimmune disease. One morning, she could not recognize her mother and soon developed increased energy and pressured speech. The condition worsened, with paranoid delusions. In the emergency unit, she ran around speaking incoherently. The condition was interpreted as a full-scale mania. After pediatric clearance, the patient was admitted to the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Mood-stabilizing treatment was initiated with second-generation psychotics and lithium, but this brought no improvement. A multidisciplinary discussion was held with physicians from psychiatry and neurology. A lumbar puncture showed N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor antibodies, and autoimmune treatment was initiated. Computed tomography thorax/abdomen revealed a right-sided ovarian tumor. After salpingo-oophorectomy, our patient’s mental status gradually improved, as demonstrated by repeated testing. Seven months post discharge she was in a stable relationship and performing well in school. Conclusion This case underlines the importance of collaboration between child and adolescent psychiatry and pediatrics, and gives pointers for timely diagnosis. Manic adolescents who do not respond to mood-stabilizing treatment should be subjected to further consultations and investigations. Psychiatrists and neurologists should develop an integrated approach to the management of brain disorders.

Background. Turner syndrome (TS) is an X-linked chromosomal abnormality with a global prevalence of 1/2000 live-born girls. The physiological symptoms of TS have been thoroughly characterized, but only a few studies have described associated psychiatric symptoms. We report a case of an adolescent girl who presented with acute mania with psychotic features and was successfully treated with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). She was subsequently diagnosed with bipolar syndrome and TS. Case Presentation. A 17-year-old girl presented to us with manic symptoms, including disorganized speech, auditory hallucinations, and affect lability. Initially, she was treated with antipsychotics and benzodiazepines, whereby the positive affective symptoms declined. However, the psychotic symptoms progressed, and she developed a catatonic state. ECT was started 6 days after admission, with improvement after two treatments. When ECT was tapered after seven sessions, she relapsed, and the treatment was extended to twelve sessions, with successful outcome. Following discharge, she was diagnosed with TS with partial loss on one of the X-chromosomes (46X, del (X)(p21)), which might have contributed to the development of her sudden acute manic episode. Conclusions. This case demonstrates for the first time that ECT may be a safe and efficient treatment strategy for acute mania in adolescents with concomitant TS and that severely affected adolescents may require a prolonged series with gradual tapering of ECT. The present case also demonstrates a possible association between TS and bipolar syndrome and that the clinical presentation of a manic episode in a patient with this comorbidity could be more complex and the treatment response slower.

Abstract Background Comorbidity of bipolar disorder and obsessive–compulsive disorder is common in adolescence. Obsessive–compulsive disorder symptoms may be episodic and secondary to alterations in mood, and display specific features. Management of pediatric bipolar disorder-obsessive–compulsive disorder is challenging, as pharmacotherapy of obsessive–compulsive disorder may induce or exacerbate manic episodes and there is limited evidence of treatment efficacy. Electroconvulsive therapy is sparsely used in children and adolescents, but is documented to be a safe and efficacious intervention in adults with bipolar disorder. In view of the severity of symptoms in juvenile mania, studies on treatment strategies are warranted. We report a case of an adolescent with bipolar disorder-obsessive–compulsive disorder who was successfully treated with electroconvulsive therapy during an episode of severe mania. Case presentation A 16-year-old girl of Middle East origin first presented to us with depressed mood, irritability, and increased obsessive–compulsive disorder symptoms, which were initially interpreted in the context of acute stress secondary to migration. She had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and obsessive–compulsive disorder in her previous home country, but had difficulties in accounting for earlier psychiatric history. During hospitalization her mood switched to a manic state with mixed and psychotic features, at times showing aggression toward others. Interruption in her lithium treatment for a short period and possibly the introduction of an atypical antipsychotic could in part have been triggering factors. After 8 weeks of in-patient care and psychotropic drug trials, electroconvulsive therapy was initiated and administered every second or third day for 4 weeks, with marked positive response. No apparent side effects were reported. Conclusions This case demonstrates the need for a detailed medical history, taking special note of periodicity and character of obsessive–compulsive disorder symptoms, in adolescents with mood disorders. When treating culturally diverse patients, extra consideration should be taken. Special concerns in the pharmacological treatment to avoid the patient’s condition from worsening must be addressed, including giving priority to mood stabilization before obsessive–compulsive disorder symptoms. There are potential benefits in considering electroconvulsive therapy in young patients with severe mania where first-line treatment options have failed.

Aims: Dependence on legal psychotropic drugs (PTD) has been reported to have increased in alcoholics, but previous studies report conflicting results concerning the rate of increase and clinical characteristics. The aim of the present study was first, to assess the dependence rate of PTD among alcoholics in open and institutionalized care, and to compare these populations with the general population, and second, to assess rates and doses of high- and low-dose PTD-dependence among alcoholics. Methods: In 1997, alcoholics in open and institutionalized care were asked to anonymously fill in a questionnaire on their drug use and dependence. Healthy controls were included. The number of attending subjects was 130 open-care alcoholics at the Department of Alcohol and Drug Diseases in Malmö, Sweden; 23 alcoholics in institutionalized care at Karlsvik Rehabilitation Centre in Höör, Sweden; and 120 healthy controls at Vårdcentralen Kirseberg, a primary health care centre located in a Malmö area. The approximate attendance rate was 75, 70 and 95%, respectively. The questionnaire was based on DSM-IV criteria for dependence. Results: The total rate of PTD-dependent alcoholics was higher in the institutionalized group (35%) than in the open-care setting (14%): difference in proportions (p1-p2 21%; 95% CI: 1%, 41%). Alcoholics were more often PTD-dependent (17%) than were healthy controls (2%), (p1-p2 15%; 95% CI: 9%, 21%). Benzodiazepines (BZD) were the most common PTD. Only four out of a total of 23 BZD-dependent alcoholics developed high-dose BZD-dependence. Those subjects were also misusing other drugs, including cannabis. Conclusions: We conclude that alcoholism is associated with legal PTD-dependence and illegal drug misuse. High-dose BZD-dependence is infrequent among BZD-dependent alcoholics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]