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This study investigates the capacity of pre/perinatal factors to predict attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in childhood. It also explores whether predictive accuracy of a pre/perinatal model varies for different groups in the population. We used the ABCD (Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development) cohort from the United States (N = 9975). Pre/perinatal information and the Child Behavior Checklist were reported by the parent when the child was aged 9–10. Forty variables which are generally known by birth were input as potential predictors including maternal substance-use, obstetric complications and child demographics. Elastic net regression with 5-fold validation was performed, and subsequently stratified by sex, race/ethnicity, household income and parental psychopathology. Seventeen pre/perinatal variables were identified as robust predictors of ADHD symptoms in this cohort. The model explained just 8.13% of the variance in ADHD symptoms on average (95% CI = 5.6%–11.5%). Predictive accuracy of the model varied significantly by subgroup, particularly across income groups, and several pre/perinatal factors appeared to be sex-specific. Results suggest we may be able to predict childhood ADHD symptoms with modest accuracy from birth. This study needs to be replicated using prospectively measured pre/perinatal data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psychotic experiences (PE) are common in the general population, in particular in childhood, adolescence and young adulthood. PE have been shown to be associated with an increased risk for later psychotic disorders, mental disorders, and poorer functioning. Recent findings have highlighted the relevance of PE to many fields of healthcare, including treatment response in clinical services for anxiety & depression treatment, healthcare costs and service use. Despite PE relevance to many areas of mental health, and healthcare research, there remains a gap of information between PE researchers and experts in other fields. With this review, we aim to bridge this gap by providing a broad overview of the current state of PE research, and future directions. This narrative review aims to provide an broad overview of the literature on psychotic experiences, under the following headings: (1) Definition and Measurement of PE; (2) Risk Factors for PE; (3) PE and Health; (4) PE and Psychosocial Functioning; (5) Interventions for PE, (6) Future Directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous systematic reviews and meta-analyses of cross-sectional data assessing the effect of cannabis on cognitive functioning and intelligence show inconsistent results. We hypothesized that frequent and dependent cannabis use in youth would be associated with Intelligence Quotient (IQ) decline. This study is a systematic review and meta-analysis. We searched Embase, PubMed and PsychInfo from inception to 24 January 2020. We included studies with non-treatment seeking samples and pre- and post-exposure measures of IQ. We requested data from authors if summary data was not available from published work. We preregistered our review with PROSPERO (ID no. CRD42019125624). We found seven cohort studies including 808 cases and 5308 controls. We found a significant effect for the association between frequent or dependent cannabis use in youth and IQ change, Cohen's d = −0.132 (95% CI −0.198 to −0.066) p < 0.001. Statistical heterogeneity between studies was also low at I2 = 0.2%. Study quality was moderate to high. This translates to an average decline of approximately 2 IQ points following exposure to cannabis in youth. Future studies should have longer periods of follow up to assess the magnitude of developmental impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor encephalitis is a form of encephalitis occurring primarily in women and associated with antibodies against NR1 or NR2 subunits of the NMDA receptor. As a potentially treatable differential for symptoms and signs seen in neurology and psychiatric clinics, clinicians practising across the lifespan should be aware of this form of encephalitis. Common clinical features include auditory and visual hallucinations, delusions, behavioural change (frequently with agitation), impaired consciousness, motor disturbance (ranging from dyskinesia to catatonia), seizures, and autonomic dysfunction. We present a review of the literature on the disorder, including its clinical presentation, differential diagnosis, epidemiology, treatment and prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Temporal lobe epilepsy is associated with a significant risk of psychosis but there are only limited studies investigating the underlying neurobiology.Aims: To characterise neuroanatomical changes in temporal lobe epilepsy and comorbid psychosis.Method: The study population comprised all individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy on the epilepsy database at the National Centre for Epilepsy and Epilepsy Neurosurgery in Ireland (Beaumont Hospital) between 2002 and 2006. Ten people with temporal lobe epilepsy with psychosis were matched for age, gender, handedness, epilepsy duration, seizure laterality, severity of epilepsy and anti-epileptic medication with ten comparison participants with temporal lobe epilepsy only. Participants received a magnetic resonance imaging scan and voxel-based morphometry analyses were applied to grey and white matter anatomy.Results: Significant grey matter reduction was found bilaterally in those with temporal lobe epilepsy with psychosis in the temporal lobes in the inferior, middle and superior temporal gyri and fusiform gyri, and unilaterally in the left parahippocampal gyrus and hippocampus. Significant extratemporal grey matter reduction was found bilaterally in the insula, cerebellum, caudate nuclei and in the right cingulum and left inferior parietal lobule. Significant white matter reduction in those with temporal lobe epilepsy with psychosis was found bilaterally in the hippocampus, parahippocampal/fusiform gyri, middle/inferior temporal gyri, cingulum, corpus callosum, posterior thalamic radiation, anterior limb of internal capsule and white matter fibres from the caudate nuclei, and unilaterally in the left lingual gyrus and right midbrain and superior temporal gyrus.Conclusions: Significant grey and white matter deficits occur in temporal lobe epilepsy with psychosis. These encompass the medial temporal lobe structures but also extend to lateral temporal and extratemporal regions. Some of these deficits overlap with those found in schizophrenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Schizophrenia is associated with altered neural development. We assessed neurological soft signs (NSS) and dermatoglyphic anomalies (total a–b ridge count (TABRC) and total finger ridge count) in 15 pairs of twins concordant and discordant for schizophrenia. Within-pair differences in both NSS and TABRC scores were significantly greater in discordant compared to concordant monozygotic pairs. There was no significant difference in NSS and TABRC scores between subjects with schizophrenia and their co-twins without the illness. However, monozygotic discordant twins with schizophrenia had higher ABRCs on their right hands compared to their co-twins without the illness. These findings suggest that an unidentified environmental event acting between weeks 6 and 15 of gestation affects the development of monozygotic twins who go on to develop schizophrenia but does not have a corresponding effect on their co-twins who do not develop the illness. The effect of such an event on dermatoglyphic profiles appears lateralised to the right hand in affected twins. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: The season of birth phenomenon in schizophrenia was reexamined in relation to place of birth, in order to test the hypothesis that a seasonal factor might operate preferentially among those who were urban-born.Method: The seasonal distribution of births was examined among 3253 patients in two case registers having an ICD-9 diagnosis of schizophrenia and compared with the distribution of births among the normal population born in those catchment areas over the same period; those subjects born in population centres greater than 50,000 were defined as urban-born.Results: Patients who were urban-born showed an excess of winter births relative to controls that was absent among their rural-born counterparts. On comparing patient groups, those who were urban-born were more likely to be born in the winter, while those who were rural-born were more likely to be born in the spring; this urban-rural distinction was confined essentially to female patients.Conclusions: These findings might be accommodated most readily in terms of a spatially as well as seasonally varying environmental factor that is associated with urbanicity and to which female offspring are more vulnerable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the neurodevelopmental hypothesis of schizophrenia. According to the author, the neurodevelopmental hypothesis of schizophrenia proposes that an early insult to the developing brain could lead to brain changes. He states that this hypothesis was promoted most recently but later denied because of several new findings. He urges the need to re-evaluate the findings of neurodevelopmental hypothesis of schizophrenia to understand the mechanism underlying those changes.

A letter to the editor is presented in response to an article about the association between anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor encephalitis and psychosis in the December 2011 issue, along with the authors' reply.

We present four cases of confirmed anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis; three presented initially with serious psychiatric symptoms and the other developed significant psychiatric symptoms during the initial phase of illness. Brain biopsy findings of one patient are also described. Psychiatrists should consider anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis in patients presenting with psychosis and additional features of dyskinesias, seizures and catatonia, particularly where there is no previous history of psychiatric disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is evidence that the superior temporal gyrus and Heschl's gyrus within it are implicated in schizophrenia. We investigated neuronal and glial cell density and cortical thickness within Heschl's gyrus, using the optical disector to estimate cell density within cortical layers 3 and 5 in tissue derived postmortem from people with diagnoses of major depressive disorder, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, compared with normal controls (n=15 per group). No significant difference in neuronal or glial cell density or in cortical thickness was observed between the groups; our findings therefore provide no support for the presence of cellular pathology within Heschl's gyrus in schizophrenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article "Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis: A Important Differential Diagnosis in Psychosis," by Helen Barry, O. Hardima, D. G. Healy, M. Keogan, J. Moroney, P. P. Molnar et al., in the 2011 issue.

Background: Prenatal and perinatal complications are established risk factors for psychotic disorder, but far less is known about these measures and psychotic experiences (PEs). We investigated the longitudinal effect of prenatal risk factors (maternal behavior, medication complications) and perinatal risk factors (birth weight, medical complications) on frequency of PEs. We also examined the cumulative risk of prenatal/perinatal risk factors, and differences between transient PE, persistent PE, and controls., Methods: The Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study is a large child cohort (age 9-10 at baseline; n = 11 872 with PE data). PEs were measured longitudinally using the Prodromal Questionnaire-Brief, Child version, and included only if reported as distressing. Mixed-effects models were used for analysis, controlling for random effects, and a substantial number of fixed-effects covariates., Results: Urinary tract infection ( β = 0.11, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.03-0.19) and severe anemia ( β = 0.18, 95% CI 0.07-0.29) increased frequency of distressing PEs in childhood. Number of prenatal complications increased frequency of PEs ( β = 0.03, 95% CI 0.01-0.06) and risk of persistent PEs (odds ratio [OR] = 1.08, 95% CI 1.01-1.15). Maternal smoking was associated with an increased frequency of PEs ( β = 0.11, 95% CI 0.04-0.18) and persistent PEs (OR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.04-1.66). Maternal substance use was a risk factor for a 48% increased risk of persistent PEs (OR = 1.48, 95% CI 1.08-2.01). Perinatal complications showed no effect on PEs., Conclusions: This study provides evidence that certain prenatal medical complications (severe nausea, severe anemia), cumulative number of prenatal medical complications, and maternal behaviors (smoking during pregnancy), increased frequency of distressing PEs in childhood. Maternal smoking and substance use, as well as cumulative number of prenatal complications increased risk of persistent PEs.

Objectives: The commonest psychiatric presentation in most emergency departments (EDs) is deliberate self-harm. However, there are other significant categories of psychiatric presentation which include alcohol and substance misuse, acute psychosis and mood disorder. In addition to the NICE Guidelines for deliberate self-harm, there are good practice guidelines available for the management of other psychiatric attendances to the ED. The aim of this study was to identify the psychiatric attendances other than deliberate self-harm to Beaumont Hospital ED over a 12-month period with the objective of studying the rates and characteristics of attendances and to investigate whether good practice guidelines were met., Method: From a total of 657 psychiatric attendances other than deliberate self-harm which were recorded, data was collected on demographics, provision of a psychosocial assessment and adherence to good practice guidelines., Results: Alcohol (38%) was the most common reason for presentation. Of the total number of attendees, only 44% received a psychosocial assessment compared to 59% of attendees who had presented following deliberate self-harm during the same 12-month period., Conclusions: The attendees who did not receive a psychosocial assessment represent a vulnerable group in which the levels of psychosocial assessment need to be improved in order to meet good practice guidelines standards of care.