Inés Moragrega

Relationship between eating styles and temperament in an Anorexia Nervosa, Healthy Control, and Morbid Obesity female sample.

OBJECTIVES Eating styles have been studied in both Obesity (OB) and Eating Disorders (ED), but they have not been examined in these two weight conditions together. The present study explores differences in eating styles in an Anorexia Nervosa (AN) and OB sample, compared to Healthy Controls (HC), and it analyses their relationship with Body Mass Index (BMI) and personality traits. METHOD The total sample consisted of 291 female participants (66 AN, 79 OB and 146 HC). EVALUATION Assessment measures included the Dutch Eating Behaviour Questionnaire-DEBQ- and the Temperament and Character Inventory-Revised-TCI-R-. RESULTS The MANCOVA test showed significant differences among the three groups for all eating styles, with emotional eating being more typical in the OB group and restrained eating more typical in the AN group. Partial correlation analyses showed relationships between emotional and external eating and BMI, as well as relationships with different temperament and character traits. The stepwise discriminant function analysis showed that the DEBQ correctly classified 65.6% of the sample into the three weight categories; when combined with the TCI-R, correct classification increased to 72.6%. CONCLUSIONS Weight conditions showed different eating behaviour patterns. Temperament and character traits were related to eating behaviours. DEBQ and TCI-R were able to discriminate between groups. Differences in eating styles in the weight groups can have implications for understanding the development and maintenance of OB and ED.

Modulation of the Endocannabinoids N-Arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA) and 2-Arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) on Executive Functions in Humans

Animal studies point to an implication of the endocannabinoid system on executive functions. In humans, several studies have suggested an association between acute or chronic use of exogenous cannabinoids (Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and executive impairments. However, to date, no published reports establish the relationship between endocannabinoids, as biomarkers of the cannabinoid neurotransmission system, and executive functioning in humans. The aim of the present study was to explore the association between circulating levels of plasma endocannabinoids N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA) and 2-Arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) and executive functions (decision making, response inhibition and cognitive flexibility) in healthy subjects. One hundred and fifty seven subjects were included and assessed with the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test; Stroop Color and Word Test; and Iowa Gambling Task. All participants were female, aged between 18 and 60 years and spoke Spanish as their first language. Results showed a negative correlation between 2-AG and cognitive flexibility performance (r = −.37; p<.05). A positive correlation was found between AEA concentrations and both cognitive flexibility (r = .59; p<.05) and decision making performance (r = .23; P<.05). There was no significant correlation between either 2-AG (r = −.17) or AEA (r = −.08) concentrations and inhibition response. These results show, in humans, a relevant modulation of the endocannabinoid system on prefrontal-dependent cognitive functioning. The present study might have significant implications for the underlying executive alterations described in some psychiatric disorders currently associated with endocannabinoids deregulation (namely drug abuse/dependence, depression, obesity and eating disorders). Understanding the neurobiology of their dysexecutive profile might certainly contribute to the development of new treatments and pharmacological approaches.

An Internet-based program for depression using activity and physiological sensors: efficacy, expectations, satisfaction, and ease of use.

Purpose Computerized cognitive behavioral therapy (CCBT) has been shown to be efficacious. Moreover, CCBT can be enhanced by using physiological and activity sensors, but there is no evidence about the acceptability of all these tools. The objective of this study is to examine the efficacy, expectations, satisfaction, and ease of use of an Internet-based CCBT program for preventing depression, with and without sensors (electroencephalography, electrocardiograhpy ECG, and actigraphy), in a high-risk population (unemployed men). Patients and methods Sixty participants at risk of depression (unemployed men) were randomly assigned to three experimental conditions: 1) intervention program (N=22), 2) intervention program plus sensors (N=19), and 3) control group (N=19). Participants completed depression, anxiety, positive and negative affect, and perceived stress measures. Furthermore, they also completed the measures for expectation, satisfaction, and the ease of use of the program. Results Results showed that the two intervention groups improved significantly more than the control group on the clinical variables, and the improvements were greater in the group that used sensors than in the group that did not use them. Furthermore, participants in both intervention groups scored high on expectations and satisfaction with the CCBT program (with and without sensors). The mean score for usability was 88 out of 100 (standard deviation =12.32). No significant differences were found between groups on any of these variables. Conclusion This is the first study to analyze the efficacy, expectations, satisfaction, and ease of use of an Internet-based program using physiological and activity sensors. These results suggest that an Internet program for depression with or without physiological and activity sensors is effective, satisfactory, and easy to use.

Quantifying Insufficient Coping Behavior under Chronic Stress: A Cross-Cultural Study of 1,303 Students from Italy, Spain and Argentina

The question of how to quantify insufficient coping behavior under chronic stress is of major clinical relevance. In fact, chronic stress increasingly dominates modern work conditions and can affect nearly every system of the human body, as suggested by physical, cognitive, affective and behavioral symptoms. Since freshmen students experience constantly high levels of stress due to tight schedules and frequent examinations, we carried out a 3-center study of 1,303 students from Italy, Spain and Argentina in order to develop socioculturally independent means for quantifying coping behavior. The data analysis relied on 2 self-report questionnaires: the Coping Strategies Inventory (COPE) for the assessment of coping behavior and the Zurich Health Questionnaire which assesses consumption behavior and general health dimensions. A neural network approach was used to determine the structural properties inherent in the COPE instrument. Our analyses revealed 2 highly stable, socioculturally independent scales that reflected basic coping behavior in terms of the personality traits activity-passivity and defeatism-resilience. This replicated previous results based on Swiss and US-American data. The percentage of students exhibiting insufficient coping behavior was very similar across the study sites (11.5-18.0%). Given their stability and validity, the newly developed scales enable the quantification of basic coping behavior in a cost-efficient and reliable way, thus clearing the way for the early detection of subjects with insufficient coping skills under chronic stress who may be at risk of physical or mental health problems.

Contents Vol. 49, 2016

Founded 1897 as ‘Monatsschrift für Psychiatrie und Neurologie’, continued 1957–1967 as ‘Psychiatria et Neurologia’, continued 1968–1983 as ‘Psychiatria Clinica’ Founders: C. Wernicke and Th. Ziehen Successors: K. Bonhoeffer (1912–1938), J. Klaesi (1939–1967), E. Grünthal (1953–1973), N. Petrilowitsch (1968–1970), Th. Spoerri (1971–1973), P. Berner (1974–1999), E. Gabriel (1974–2004), Ch. Mundt (2000–2011)

A user-friendly tool for detecting the stress level in a person's daily life

Mental health care represents over a third of the cost of health care to all EU nations and, in USA, it is estimated to be around the 2.5% of the gross national product. Depression and Stress related disorders are the most common mental illnesses. The European project OPTIMI will develop tools to make predictions through the early identification on the onset of the disease. In this paper, we present a user-friendly application developed in the OPTIMI project to detect the stress level in a persons daily life. The results of a first usability study of this application are also presented.