Clozapine is considered the gold standard for the treatment of patients with treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS); however, randomized controlled trials (RCT) of olanzapine showed efficacy similar to clozapine in patients with TRS.

A systematic review was conducted comparing clozapine with olanzapine in patients with TRS. Meta-analyses were performed for single outcome measures. Response to treatment was measured by the percentage of responders, or mean change or endpoint values of psychotic symptoms scales. Effect sizes were shown as relative risks (RR), or standardized mean differences, with 95% confidence intervals.

Seven RCT were included, comprising 648 patients. Five meta-analyses were performed. Olanzapine and clozapine had similar effects on dropout rates (RR = 0.93, CI95% = 0.77–1.12), PANSS total endpoints (SMD = 0.21, CI95% = –0.04–0.46), and PANSS total mean changes (SMD = 0.08, CI95% = –0.01–0.027). Clozapine was superior to olanzapine for PANSS positive (SMD = 0.51, CI95% = 0.17–0.86) and negative (SMD = 0.50, CI95% = 0.16–0.85) subscales. There was a trend toward high doses of olanzapine producing higher effect sizes for this drug.

The results of this study suggest that clozapine is significantly more efficacious than olanzapine in improving positive and negative symptoms in TRS patients.

To compare patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to patients without psychiatric or cognitive disorders on neuropsychological measures of attention.

The sample included 19 patients with PTSD and 22 participants with no cognitive or psychiatric diagnosis. All had been referred for clinical neuropsychological evaluation at a VA Medical Center. None were diagnosed with dementia, delirium, or current substance dependence except nicotine or caffeine, and none had a history of stroke or of traumatic brain injury with loss of consciousness. Patients were excluded if they failed to exert adequate effort on testing.

PTSD patients performed significantly more poorly than patients without psychiatric diagnoses on Digit Span.

PTSD patients were impaired relative to participants without psychiatric diagnoses on a measure of focused attention. Several factors, including the small sample size, suggest that the results should be considered preliminary.

Whether posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following radiation emergency has psychopathological, neurocognitive, and neurophysiological peculiarities is at issue.

The goal was to explore the features and cerebral basis of “radiation” PTSD in the survivors of the Chernobyl accident.

The cross-sectional study included 241 people, 219 of whom have been diagnosed with PTSD according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed. (DSM-IV) criteria, among them 115 clean-up workers of the Chernobyl accident (34 with acute radiation sickness), 76 evacuees from the Chernobyl exclusion zone, 28 veterans of the war in Afghanistan, and 22 healthy unexposed individuals. Psychometric examinations, neurocognitive assessments, computerized electroencephalography, and cerebral vascular Doppler were used.

“Radiation” PTSD includes “flashforward” phenomena and anticipating stress (projection of fear and danger to the future); somatoform disorders (depression, trait and state anxiety); and neurocognitive deficit (impaired memory and attention, auditory-verbal memory and learning, proactive and retroactive interference, cerebellar and stem symptoms, intellectual changes). The intima-media component, thickness of common carotid arteries, and common and left internal carotid arteries stenosis rates are increased in the liquidators. Changes of bioelectrical brain activity as a decrease of beta- and theta-power, together with an increase of alpha-power, were found in the Chernobyl accident survivors with PTSD.

PTSD following radiation emergency is characterized by comorbidity of psychopathology, neurocognitive deficit, and cerebrovascular pathology with increased risk of cerebral atherosclerosis and stroke. The cerebral basis of this PTSD is proposed to be an abnormal communication between the pyramidal cells of the neocortex and the hippocampus, and deep brain structures. It is recommended that a system of emergency and long-term psychological and psychiatric care be organized for the survivors in Fukushima Daichi, Japan

Secondary pharmacological interventions have shown promise at reducing the development of posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms (PTSS) in preclinical studies. The present study examined the preliminary efficacy of a 10-day low-dose (20 mg bid) course of hydrocortisone at preventing PTSS in traumatic injury victims.

Sixty-four traumatic injury patients (34% female) were randomly assigned in a double-blind protocol to receive either a 10-day course of hydrocortisone or placebo initiated within 12 hours of the trauma. One-month and 3-months posttrauma participants completed an interview to assess PTSS and self-report measures of depression and health-related quality of life.

Hydrocortisone recipients reported fewer PTSD and depression symptoms, and had greater improvements in health-related quality of life during the first 3 months posttrauma than did placebo recipients. Hydrocortisone recipients who had never received prior mental health treatment had the lowest PTSD scores.

Low-dose hydrocortisone may be a promising approach to the prevention of PTSD in acutely injured trauma patients, and may be particularly efficacious in acutely injured trauma victims without a history of significant psychopathology.