Longitudinal imaging studies in schizophrenia: the relationship between brain morphology and outcome measures

Imaging studies have tried to identify morphological outcome measures of schizophrenia in the last two decades. In particular, longitudinal studies have reported a correlation between larger ventricles, decreased prefrontal volumes and worse outcome. This would potentially allow to isolate subtypes of schizophrenia patients with a worse prognosis and more evident biological impairments, ultimately helping in designing specific rehabilitation interventions.

Primary care and the early phases of schizophrenia in the Czech Republic

SUMMARYAim– To explore knowledge, treatment setting, attitudes and needs associated with patients in early phases of psychosis among general practitioners (GPs) in Prague, andto compare results with GPs from 6 countries participating in theInternational GP Study(IGPS)on Early Psychosis(Canada, Australia, New Zealand, England, Norway,Austria).Methods– Survey questionnaires were mailed to 648 GPs in the city of Prague.Results– The response rate was 19.9%. Prague GPs showed significantly lower diagnostic knowledge of early phases of psychosis compared to their international colleagues. They frequently indicated depression/anxiety and somatic complaints as early warnings of psychosis. They more often considered their behaviour to be problematic and more commonly handed them over to specialists. The majority of Prague GPs wished specialized outpatient services for low-threshold referrals of such patients.Conclusions– Along the mental health reforms in the Czech Republic which emphasis the role of primary care, GPs' knowledge of the early warning signs of psychosis needs to be improved.Declaration of Interest:The study was supported by an unrestricted grant from Sanofi-Synthélabo SA, Switzerland, to the principal investigators of the IGPS (AES, DU). The authors have stated that there are none; all authors are independent from the funding body and the views expressed in this paper have not been influenced by the funding source.

The place of theBritish Journal of Psychiatryin the mental health league

TheBritish Journal of Psychiatryis an independent mainstream general psychiatric journal that competes reasonably well with others in the field. It does so by keeping a healthy balance between the demands of its readers, its contributors and the need for good science. It publishes an eclectic mix of original articles, reviews, editorials, reappraisals, comment, opinion and extras, the latter including poetry, short summaries, literature and psychiatry, and a touch of humour. These contributions are not always in keeping with the harsh requirements of the impact factor, but we judge that this makes for a better all-round journal that advances psychiatry in all its manifold aspects and is anything but dull.

The process of producing a “NICE” guideline

SUMMARYThis paper describes the process of preparing a Clinical Guideline for “NICE”, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence in the United Kingdom. The procedure involves the group appointed to prepare the guideline relating to the various “stakeholders” who have an interest on the one hand, and satisfying the fairly demanding standards set by NICE on the other. The strengths and limitations of the approach based on evidence based medicine are discussed.

Do financial incentives increase treatment adherence in people with severe mental illness? A systematic review

SUMMARYAim – To identify whether financial or material incentives improve treatment adherence in people with severe mental illness. Method – A systematic review of studies published between 1950 and 2008 was conducted. EMBASE, MEDLINE, EBM, AMED and PsycINFO were searched. Studies were included if a financial or material incentive was offered and if the sample had a severe mental illness. Results – Fourteen articles were identified; three studies on adherence to psychiatric treatment and one on physical exercise. Ten articles used incentives for adherence to substance misuse treatment programmes. In all studies, financial incentives were associated with an increase in adherence; however the effect was not always maintained once the incentive was withdrawn. Conclusion – While existing research suggests that financial incentives may improve treatment adherence in severely mentally ill populations, very few studies focus on psychiatric treatment. Further research may address the long term effectiveness of incentives on adherence in this population.Declaration of Interest: The authors on this paper were supported by funds from the Wellcome Trust. All authors worked on a Wellcome Trust funded qualitative focus group study exploring stakeholder views on offering patients financial incentives to adhere to antipsychotic medication. Priebe is also lead applicant on a National Institute of Health Research (England) (NIHR) awarded grant to conduct a clinical trial on the use of financial incentives to achieve maintenance antipsychotic medication adherence.

The economic impact of mental health stigma and discrimination: A systematic review

SUMMARYPeople with mental illness face stigma and discrimination in a variety of settings which can have an economic impact. Aim – The aim of this paper was to identify literature on the economic impact of mental illness stigma. Methods – A systematic review of the literature identified 30 papers from 27 studies by searching electronic databases and hand searching reference lists. Results – Mental illness stigma/discrimination was found to impact negatively on employment, income, public views about resource allocation and healthcare costs. Conclusions – Stigma and discrimination regarding mental health problems lead to adverse economic effects for people with these conditions. Interventions that reduce stigma may therefore also be economically beneficial.Declaration of Interest: This study was funded in relation to a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Applied Programme grant awarded to the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and in relation to the NIHR Specialist Mental Health Biomedical Research Centre at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London and the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. There is no conflict of interest in connection with the submitted article.

Parental bonding and eating psychopathology in bulimia nervosa: personality traits as possible mediators

SUMMARYAims– The relationship between eating disorders, attachment, personality traits and eating psychopathology remains unexplored. This study tested the mediating role of temperament and character between parental bonding and psy-chopathology in bulimic women.Methods– 154 bulimic subjects and 154 healthy controls were compared using Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI), Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), Eating Disorder Inventory-2 (EDI-2), and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Multiple regression analysis tested the mediation of personality traits between parenting and eating psy-chopathology.Results– Bulimic subjects displayed low maternal and paternal care and low self-directedness, and high novelty seeking and eating psychopathology. Maternal care was negatively related to social insecurity, inadequacy and impulsiveness. Paternal care predicted novelty seeking, self-directedness, interoceptive awareness, impulsiveness, and asceticism. The mediation effect of self-directedness between paternal care and psychopathology was significant, not the one of novelty seeking. Conclusions – Parental care is lower in bulimic than in control women even when controlled for possible confounding variables. Some eating psychopathology traits are related to maternal and paternal care, but not the bulimia subscale. Paternal care is also related to temperament and character traits which are related to eating psychopathology. Self-directedness mediates with different degrees between parenting and eating psychopathology. Clinical implications are discussed.Declaration of Interest:The first author received financing from Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation for the research on eating disorders (3989 IT/FA 2005.1797). The National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) awarded a Charron Family Grant to the second author to sustain research about the families of subjects affected by eating disorders. The third author received a grant from “Regione Piemonte” for research on Eating Disorders for the years 2008 and 2009. The authors have not received any other financing for the present research, including pharmaceutical company support or any honoraria for consultancies for interventions during the last two years. The authors are not involved in any conflict of interest in connection to the submitted article.

Authors are not criminals and editors should not be policemen

Authors are a necessary and most appreciated basis for the publishing of any scientific journal. They should be welcomed for their creativity, originality and productivity, not stigmatized in general as cheaters and criminals because a very few were tempted beyond their control to cut the slices a bit too thin, overdo the utilization of leftover data, listed too many authors to a paper, forgot to report a harmless study to an ethical committee, or in very few cases commit severe actions of fraud.The managerial way of thinking, meeting every author with systems of control and limitations is like poison to creative minds. Instead of appointing editors as policemen, we may preferably meet the vast majority of classical scholarly working scientists with trust, confidence and support, facilitating the process of disseminating the results from their creative minds – and of course consequently show the deliberately cheating researchers the door when they act unfaithfully to the scientific society.

The many lives of an (associate) editor

The role of editor of a journal attracts the vision of a scholar isolated in an ivory tower selecting “la crème” of the submitted papers, with no other preoccupations that the scientific rigour. This, is of course, only one of the many roles – or, as this editorial calls them, lives – of an editor. The essential skills are many and more complex, and an editor will encounter many problems that are related to such diverse issues as anticipating scientific trends, investigating misbehaviours, settling ethical disputes, and interfacing with the lay press. It is exciting and rewarding, and never predictable.