Cemal Onur Noyan

Smartphone addiction and its relationship with social anxiety and loneliness

ABSTRACT Individuals with psychosocial problems such as social phobia or feelings of loneliness might be vulnerable to excessive use of cyber-technological devices, such as smartphones. We aimed to determine the relationship of smartphone addiction with social phobia and loneliness in a sample of university students in Istanbul, Turkey. Three hundred and sixty-seven students who owned smartphones were given the Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS), UCLA Loneliness Scale (UCLA-LS), and Brief Social Phobia Scale (BSPS). A significant difference was found in the mean SAS scores (p < .001) between users who declared that their main purpose for smartphone use was to access social networking sites. The BSPS scores showed positive correlations with all six subscales and with the total SAS scores. The total UCLA-LS scores were positively correlated with daily life disturbance, positive anticipation, cyber-oriented relationship, and total scores on the SAS. In regression analyses, total BSPS scores were significant predictors for SAS total scores (β = 0.313, t = 5.992, p < .001). In addition, BSPS scores were significant predictors for all six SAS subscales, whereas UCLA-LS scores were significant predictors for only cyber-oriented relationship subscale scores on the SAS (β = 0.130, t = 2.416, p < .05). The results of this study indicate that social phobia was associated with the risk for smartphone addiction in young people. Younger individuals who primarily use their smartphones to access social networking sites also have an excessive pattern of smartphone use.

Volumetric brain abnormalities in polysubstance use disorder patients.

Aim Polysubstance users represent the largest group of patients seeking treatment at addiction and rehabilitation clinics in Turkey. There is little knowledge about the structural brain abnormalities seen in polysubstance users. This study was conducted to examine the structural brain differences between polysubstance use disorder patients and healthy control subjects using voxel-based morphometry. Methods Forty-six male polysubstance use disorder patients in the early abstinence period and 30 healthy male controls underwent structural magnetic resonance imaging scans. Voxel-based morphometry analysis was performed to examine gray matter (GM) abnormality differences. Results Polysubstance use disorder patients displayed significantly smaller GM volume in the thalamus, temporal pole, superior frontal gyrus, cerebellum, gyrus rectus, occipital lobe, anterior cingulate cortex, superior temporal gyrus, and postcentral gyrus. Conclusion A widespread and smaller GM volume has been found at different regions of the frontal, temporal, occipital, and parietal lobes, cerebellum, and anterior cingulate cortex in polysubstance users.

Tolosa-Hunt syndrome and comorbidity of obsessive compulsive disorder and aortic aneurysm

A 59-year-old man with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) was on antidepressant treatment for years. Six months ago, he got a severe headache on the left side of his head, reported pain behind his left eye, diplopia and ptosis displayed on his left eyelid. The patient had mild migraine attacks occasionally. However, his previous headache was very intense when compared with earlier ones. By cranial MRI, a lesion (22×7 mm horizontally, 13×8 mm vertically) adjacent to carotid segment 4 (C4) of the left internal carotid artery was found. The lesion showed a hyperintense signal in contrast-enhanced T2-weighted images, which was the result of enhanced abnormal soft tissue extending through the orbital fissure and into the orbital apex. This did not cause compression on the optic nerve and there was slight bulging into the left cavernous sinus (figure 1). The patients blood and cerebrospinal fluid biochemical parameters were within …

Özel bir bağımlılık merkezinde yatarak tedavi gören hastalarda psikiyatrik eş tanının bağımlılığın seyri ile ilişkisi

Objective: Epidemiological studies find a high comorbidity of other Axis I and Axis II disorders with substance use disorders among adults. This study examines comorbid Axis I and Axis II disorders in order to investigate their association with sociodemographic variables and relapse among inpatients diagnosed with substance use disorders. Method: Of 403 inpatients hospitalized between January 2012 and December 2013 in an addiction clinic, 323 were enrolled in this retrospective study using their medical records and sociodemographic data. These patients were all diagnosed with alcohol and substance abuse/dependence according to DSM-IV TR by two different psychiatrists, and comorbidities were also diagnosed by two different psychiatrists. Results: Among 323 inpatients with substance use disorder, 240 (74.3%) were diagnosed with another Axis I comorbidity and 238 (73.7%) had an Axis II disorder. No statistical difference was found between patients with and without an Axis I or Axis II comorbidity in terms of age, years of education, marital status, occupation, duration of drug use, rate of relapse in 6 months, and rate of dropout. Comorbidity of an Axis I and/or Axis II disorder raised the number of hospitalizations; comorbid Axis I disorder prolonged the duration of hospitalization, whereas Axis II disorder had an inverse effect. In addition, inpatients with an Axis II comorbidity had more legal issues and shorter duration until first use after treatment than inpatients without comorbidity. Conclusion: Comorbidity of substance use disorders and other Axis I and Axis II disorders is very common. Patients with dual diagnose use health services more often and have more legal issues than patients with substance use disorders only. Comprehensive care and treatment are needed for dual-diagnosed patients.

When is the Appropriate Time for Families to be Involved in Addiction Treatment; From the Beginning? A Retrospective Evaluation of Inpatients in a Private Hospital -

Aim of the study is to investigate the referral type of dependent patients and its effect on treatment outcomes. This retrospectively designed study was conducted at a private hospital. The sample included 323 patients, and all patients’ records were evaluated according to their referral type, sociodemographic features, criminal history, relapse rates and accompanying axis II disorders. Patients were reassessed six months after their discharge by semi-structured face-to-face or phone interviews with the patient or a family member. There were significant differences in some of sociodemographic characteristics, presence of criminal records, substance use patterns and relapse rates between voluntary inpatients and coerced inpatients. These results indicate a benefit in family participation at the very early stages of dependency treatment. Prospective studies are needed to evaluate whether family participation at the beginning of dependency treatment contributes to prognosis and patient’s motivation.

Therapeutic drug monitoring: Perspectives of psychiatrists in Turkey

Abstract Objectives. Although the medical and economic implications of therapeutic drug monitoring have been intensely discussed over the past years, little is known about the experiences and attitudes of psychiatrists in their clinical practice. The aim of this study was to investigate psychiatrists’ daily practice with therapeutic drug monitoring in Turkey. Methods. A nation-wide cross-sectional survey among adult and child psychiatry specialist psychiatrists in Turkey was conducted. Results. We found that 98.4% (n = 380) of the study participants used TDM in clinical practice and 1.6% (n = 6) did not. However, TDM use is limited to mood stabilizers (lithium 96.3%, valproate 97.6%) to a great extent. Only a small number of psychiatrists perform TDM for other psychotropic drugs, e.g., clozapine 2.4%, tricyclic antidepressants 1.3%, benzodiazepines 1.1%, and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors 0,8%. Conclusions. Most of the psychiatrists in Turkey have a positive attitude toward use of therapeutic drug monitoring although there is also a considerable difficulty to reach services for the therapeutic drug monitoring of psychotropics other than mood stabilizers.