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Dive into the research topics where Igne Sinkeviciute is active.

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Featured researches published by Igne Sinkeviciute.


European Psychiatry | 2015

Suicidality in schizophrenia spectrum disorders: The relationship to hallucinations and persecutory delusions

Eirik Kjelby; Igne Sinkeviciute; Rolf Gjestad; Rune A. Kroken; Else-Marie Løberg; Hugo A. Jørgensen; Kenneth Hugdahl; Erik Johnsen

BACKGROUND Assessment of suicide risk is crucial in schizophrenia and results concerning risk contributed by hallucinations and persecutory delusions are inconsistent. We aimed to determine factors associated with suicidal ideation and plans at the time of acute admission in patients suffering from schizophrenia spectrum disorders. METHODS One hundred and twenty-four patients older than 18 years admitted to an acute psychiatric ward due to psychosis were consecutively included. Predictors of suicidal ideation and suicide plans at the time of admission were examined with multinominal logistic regression and structural equation modelling (SEM). The study design was pragmatic, thus entailing a clinically relevant representation. RESULTS Depression Odds Ratio (OR) 12.9, Drug use OR 4.07, Hallucinations OR 2.55 and Negative symptoms OR 0.88 significantly predicted Suicidal ideation. Suspiciousness/ Persecution did not. Only Depression and Hallucinations significantly predicted Suicide plans. In the SEM-model Anxiety, Depression and Hopelessness connected Suspiciousness/Persecution, Hallucinations and Lack of insight with Suicidal ideation and Suicide plans. CONCLUSIONS The study contributes to an increasing evidence base supporting an association between hallucinations and suicide risk. We want to emphasise the importance of treating depression and hallucinations in psychotic disorders, reducing hopelessness while working with insight and reducing drug abuse in order to lower suicide risk. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov ID; URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/NCT00932529.


Case reports in psychiatry | 2012

Priapism in Antipsychotic Drug Use: A Rare but Important Side Effect

Igne Sinkeviciute; Rune A. Kroken; Erik Johnsen

Priapism is a rare but important side effect of antipsychotic drugs which may evolve into a urological emergency. Most antipsychotic drugs are alpha-1 adrenergic antagonists, which is thought to be the principal mechanism involved in antipsychotic-induced priapism. Other aetiologies exist, however. A case is presented with multiple episodes of priapism during the use of several different antipsychotic drugs. The case is representative of many patients treated with antipsychotic drugs, as there were hyperprolactinemia, and illicit drug use, which are known causes of priapism. Moreover, the patient used combinations of antipsychotic drugs. The case thus illustrates the etiological complexity which could delay a diagnosis of antipsychotic-induced priapism, and the problem of establishing a link between priapism and one particular ingredient of a drug combination. The case presents how a treatment regimen was finally established balancing antipsychotic efficacy to acceptable side effects and offers guidance to physicians regarding how antipsychotic-induced priapism may be resolved.


Psychiatry Research-neuroimaging | 2018

Childhood trauma in schizophrenia spectrum disorders as compared to substance abuse disorders

Nina Mørkved; Dagfinn Winje; Anders Dovran; Kjersti Arefjord; Erik Johnsen; Rune A. Kroken; Liss-Gøril Anda-Ågotnes; Jens C. Thimm; Igne Sinkeviciute; Maria A. Rettenbacher; Else-Marie Løberg

The prevalence of childhood trauma (CT) in schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) and substance abuse disorders (SUDs) is high. Direct comparisons of CT in these disorders are lacking, and it is not known whether there are differences in self-reported CT in SSDs as compared to SUDs. We aimed to compare the frequency, severity and types of CT in SDDs and SUDs. Patients with SSDs (n = 57) and SUDs (n = 57) were matched for age and gender. Overall levels of CT and CT subtypes were measured retrospectively by the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire Short-Form (CTQ-SF), and grouped into none/low and moderate/severe levels of CT. Group differences in CTQ-SF sum score and subscale scores, as well as differences in the severity of overall CT and CT subtypes were all non-significant. In both groups, 64.9% reported ≥ 1 subtypes of CT above cut-off. Of those who reported CT above the cut-off, 13.5% in the psychosis group reported ≥ 4 subtypes, as compared to 2.7% in the substance abuse group. We did not find statistically significant differences between SSDs and SUDs in terms of exposure to CT frequency or severity, all effect sizes were small (r < 0.15).


Scandinavian Journal of Psychology | 2018

Training switching focus with a mobile-application by a patient suffering from AVH, a case report

Lucia Visser; Igne Sinkeviciute; Iris E. Sommer; Josef J. Bless

Auditory verbal hallucinations complicate many psychiatric disorders. Antipsychotic medication is effective in the majority, but a significant minority experiences high burden from resistant hallucinations. Here, we aim to improve executive control, in an attempt to decrease burden from hallucinations. We describe the use of a cognitive trainings app by a young woman with highly resistant hallucinations. With modest training, a significant decrease in the duration of hallucinations was reached. Possibilities of this training technique are discussed.


Psychiatry Research-neuroimaging | 2018

The Beliefs about Voices Questionnaire – Revised: A factor structure from 450 participants

Clara Strauss; Kenneth Hugdahl; Flavie Waters; Mark Hayward; Josef J. Bless; Liv E. Falkenberg; Bodil Kråkvik; Arve Asbjørnsen; Erik Johnsen; Igne Sinkeviciute; Rune A. Kroken; Else-Marie Løberg; Neil Thomas

Hallucinated voices are common across psychiatric and non-clinical groups. The predominant cognitive theory about the impact of voices posits that beliefs about voice power (‘Omnipotence’) and voice intent (‘Malevolence’/‘Benevolence’) play a key role in determining emotional and behavioral reactions. The revised Beliefs about Voices Questionnaire (BAVQ-R) was designed to assess these constructs, together with two styles of responding (Engagement and Resistance). The BAVQ-R is widely used in clinical and research settings, yet it has not received validation of its constructs and factor structure. This study examined the factor structure of the BAVQ-R by combining datasets from five study centers, comprising 450 participants (belief constructs) and 269 participants (response styles), and using confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis. Findings failed to support a three factor belief model, instead showing a two-factor structure (‘Persecutory beliefs’ combining Omnipotence and Malevolence constructs, and a Benevolent construct). Emotional and behavioral items did not separate. Overall, results showed that (i) a two-factor model of beliefs (Persecutory and Benevolent beliefs) provides a better fit to the data than a three-factor model, and (ii) emotional and behavioral modes of responding items should not be separated. Theoretical implications of this finding are discussed in relation to the research and therapy.


npj Schizophrenia | 2018

Efficacy of different types of cognitive enhancers for patients with schizophrenia: a meta-analysis

Igne Sinkeviciute; Marieke Begemann; Merel Prikken; Bob Oranje; Erik Johnsen; Wan U. Lei; Kenneth Hugdahl; Rune A. Kroken; Carina Rau; Jolien D. Jacobs; Silvia Mattaroccia; Iris E. Sommer

Cognitive impairment is a core feature of schizophrenia, which is predictive for functional outcomes and is, therefore, a treatment target in itself. Yet, literature on efficacy of different pharmaco-therapeutic options is inconsistent. This quantitative review provides an overview of studies that investigated potential cognitive enhancers in schizophrenia. We included pharmacological agents, which target different neurotransmitter systems and evaluated their efficacy on overall cognitive functioning and seven separate cognitive domains. In total, 93 studies with 5630 patients were included. Cognitive enhancers, when combined across all different neurotransmitter systems, which act on a large number of different mechanisms, showed a significant (yet small) positive effect size of 0.10 (k = 51, p = 0.023; 95% CI = 0.01 to 0.18) on overall cognition. Cognitive enhancers were not superior to placebo for separate cognitive domains. When analyzing each neurotransmitter system separately, agents acting predominantly on the glutamatergic system showed a small significant effect on overall cognition (k = 29, Hedges’ g = 0.19, p = 0.01), as well as on working memory (k = 20, Hedges’ g = 0.13, p = 0.04). A sub-analysis of cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEI) showed a small effect on working memory (k = 6, Hedges’ g = 0.26, p = 0.03). Other sub-analyses were positively nonsignificant, which may partly be due to the low number of studies we could include per neurotransmitter system. Overall, this meta-analysis showed few favorable effects of cognitive enhancers for patients with schizophrenia, partly due to lack of power. There is a lack of studies involving agents acting on other than glutamatergic and cholinergic systems, especially of those targeting the dopaminergic system.


Schizophrenia Bulletin | 2018

F108. PSYCHOTIC EXPERIENCES IN A NORWEGIAN SAMPLE - TENTATIVE RESULTS OF A QUESTIONNAIRE VALIDATION

Isabella Kusztrits; Frank Laroi; Julien Laloyaux; Lynn Marquardt; Igne Sinkeviciute; Eirik Kjelby; Erik Johnsen; Josef J. Bless; Kristiina Kompus; Kenneth Hugdahl; Marco Hirnstein

Abstract Background Auditory verbal hallucinations are a major symptom in schizophrenia but also affect patients with other diagnoses and healthy people without any pathology. This applies also to delusions and hallucinations of other sensory modalities. Since most questionnaires that assess hallucinations focus on one particular disorder, the Questionnaire for Psychotic Experiences (QPE) was created to provide an instrument that is applicable independently of clinical status. The QPE is a semi-structured interview consisting of 50 items that are categorized into four subscales (visual, auditory, other hallucinations and delusions). Each subscale starts with a screening question to indicate if a symptom is present, followed by questions regarding specific characteristics. We translated the QPE into Norwegian (bokmål) and distributed the screening questions online with the aims (1) to validate the Norwegian version of the screener QPE and (2) to assess the prevalence of hallucinations and delusions in the Norwegian population independently of the clinical status. Methods We conducted an online survey using a test/re-test design, which comprised the 13 screening questions of the QPE as well as demographic and clinical questions. Seven days after initial completion of the QPE participants received a link for the second round. For test/re-test reliability, we calculated concordance rates (i.e., percentage rates of how many participants gave the same response at the first and second measurement). Internal consistency is indicated with Cronbach’s alpha. Finally, we calculated a principal component analysis (PCA) for the QPE items to identify the QPE’s item structure. The study was approved by the regional ethics committee. Results Until now, 407 individuals (304 females, 103 males) with an age range of 18 to 78 (mean = 32.7) participated in the first part of the online survey, of whom 185 also took part in the re-test. Twenty-eight % of all participants had at least one psychiatric diagnosis. Among the healthy participants alone, 35% reported auditory hallucinations, 26% visual hallucinations, 40% tactile hallucinations and 28% olfactory hallucinations. Around 68% of all healthy participants reported at least one delusional experience. Cronbach’s alpha across all 13 items for the entire sample was 0.772 in the first round and 0.765 in the second round. Test/re-test reliability was between 79% and 99%. The PCA, also based on the entire sample, revealed one dimension, with high loadings especially on delusion-related questions (range: 0.488–0.697). Discussion The distribution of different modalities of hallucinations and delusions in the healthy sample suggests that psychotic experiences are not necessarily connected to diagnoses. This finding is in accordance with other studies and supports the hypothesis that psychotic experiences are independent of the clinical status. The Cronbach’s alpha suggests a good internal consistency at both time points, which stays stable over time and the test/re-test reliability shows a high accordance between the answers of round one and two. The PCA implies that the QPE screener is best characterized with a unidimensional structure, indicating that there is substantial overlap between hallucinations and delusions, even though factor loadings are particularly high for delusions. We conclude that the Norwegian version of the screener QPE is a viable tool for assessing psychotic experiences across both psychiatric and healthy populations.


Journal of Psychiatric Research | 2018

Trajectories of depressive symptoms in the acute phase of psychosis: Implications for treatment

Eirik Kjelby; Rolf Gjestad; Igne Sinkeviciute; Rune A. Kroken; Else-Marie Løberg; Hugo A. Jørgensen; Erik Johnsen

Depression is common in schizophrenia and associated with negative outcomes. Previous studies have identified heterogeneity in treatment response in schizophrenia. We aimed to investigate different trajectories of depression in patients suffering from psychosis and predictors of change in depressive symptoms during antipsychotic treatment. Two hundred and twenty-six patients >18 years acutely admitted due to psychosis were consecutively included and the follow-up was 27 weeks. The Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia (CDSS) sum score was the primary outcome. Latent growth curve (LGCM) and Growth Mixture Models (GMM) were conducted. Predictors were the Positive sum score of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale for Schizophrenia (PANSS), Schizophrenia spectrum/non-spectrum psychoses, gender and being antipsychotic naive at inclusion. We found support for three depression-trajectories, including a high- (14.7%), a low depression-level (69.6%) class and a third depressed class quickly decreasing to a low level (15.7%). Change in CDSS was associated with change in PANSS positive score in all time intervals (4 weeks: b = 0.18, p < 0.001, 3 months: 0.21, p < 0.023, 6 months: 0.43, p < 0.001) and with a diagnosis within schizophrenia spectrum but not with antipsychotic naivety or gender. The schizophrenia-spectrum patients had less depressive symptoms at inclusion (-2.63, p < 0.001). In conclusion, an early responding and a treatment refractory group were identified. The treatment-refractory patients are candidates for enhanced anti-depressive treatment, for which current evidence is limited. The post-psychotic depression group was characterized by depressive symptoms in the acute phase as well. We could not identify differentiating characteristics of the depression trajectories.


BMC Psychiatry | 2013

Hallucinations in acutely admitted patients with psychosis, and effectiveness of risperidone, olanzapine, quetiapine, and ziprasidone: a pragmatic, randomized study

Erik Johnsen; Igne Sinkeviciute; Else-Marie Løberg; Rune A. Kroken; Kenneth Hugdahl; Hugo A. Jørgensen


Schizophrenia Bulletin | 2018

O7.6. META-ANALYSIS OF EFFICACY OF COGNITIVE ENHANCERS FOR PATIENTS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA-SPECTRUM DISORDERS

Igne Sinkeviciute; Marieke Begemann; Merel Prikken; Bob Oranje; Erik Johnsen; Wan U. Lei; Kenneth Hugdahl; Rune A Kroken; Carina Rau; Jolien Jacobs; Silvia Mattaroccia; Iris E Sommer

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Erik Johnsen

Haukeland University Hospital

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Rune A. Kroken

Haukeland University Hospital

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Else-Marie Løberg

Haukeland University Hospital

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Kenneth Hugdahl

Haukeland University Hospital

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Eirik Kjelby

Haukeland University Hospital

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Rolf Gjestad

Haukeland University Hospital

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Iris E. Sommer

University Medical Center Groningen

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