A significant number of patients suffering from a mood disorder gain weight either due to the medication side effect and/or the lack of exercise. Binge Eating disorder has a high comorbidity with mood disorders. Both disorders have been found separately to have a high negative impact ob the patients quality of life

The aim of the study was to investigate the possible impact of binge eating symptomatology in the quality of life of obese patients suffering from a mood disorder.

We approached 117 obese patients treated for mood disorder (unipolar and/or bipolar). All patients were recruited from a free of charge anti-obesity program specifically designed for mental patients that have gained weight. Each participant filled in the WHO Quality of Life Brief Scale (WHOQOL-Bref), a questionnaire on Binge Eating symptomatology based on DSM-IV research criteria, the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and the Social Physique Anxiety Scale (SPAS).

According to DSM-IV criteria 40 patients were suffering from Binge Eating Disorder. The comparison between Binge Eating and non Binge Eating group (t-test) showed that the former group had higher SPAS measurements (p=0.007) and lower WHOQOL-Bref measurements in the psychological (p=0.01) and physical (p=0.006) domains. All other measurements as well as age, body mass index and gender did not show any statistical significant difference between the two groups.

The presence of Binge Eating symptomatology might worsen patients quality of life especially when they are already carrying the burden of a mood disorder and obesity.

Our study, descriptive and forward-looking, was led with diabetics type 2, consulting in the service of endocrinology of HEDI CHAKER Hospital of Sfax.

The collection of the information was realized with the help of:

1. - A data sheet containing socio-demographic data and clinical data concerning the diabetes.

2. - Hospital-Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS).

3. - Toronto Alexithymia Scale of 20 items.

Our sample consisted of 96 diabetics: 67 women and 29 men.

• The average age was of 56.23 years (ET=10, 85)

• The prevalence of depression was 32.3%, that of anxiety was 56. 3%.

• The alexithymia was estimated at 46.9%.

• The depression was correlated to the presence of cardiac co-morbidity (p=0,012).

• High prevalence of depression was found in diabetic's suffering from neurological (0.002) and renal (p=0.007) complications.

• The depression was the source of a less regular follow-up.

• The association depression-alexithymia was correlated at a less good balance of the diabetes (p=0.038).

• The anxiety does not seem to interfere with the clinical characteristics of the type 2 diabetes.

Diabetics suffering from depression have more co-morbidity and complications. This risk was increased by the association of alexithymia. So, a screening of the psychiatric symptoms is necessary to improve the quality of life and the evolution of the disease.

Increasing amount of evidence indicates an association between alexithymia and eating disorder (ED) symptoms. The aim of this study was to evaluate possible association between alexithymia and EDs in a non-clinical sample of late adolescents.

The questionnaire was sent to 935 adolescents of whom 729 (78%) completed it, thus forming the final sample. The mean age in the sample was 19 years (range 17−21 years). Alexithymia was measured using the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) and ED symptoms were assessed using the SCOFF questionnaire, a novel tool for screening ED symptoms. A TAS-20 score of 61 or more was used as the cut-off point for classifying a subject as alexithymic, and for SCOFF, the cut-off point for a SCOFF positive subject was of two or more positive answers.

The rate of alexithymia was 8.2% (8.2% for females and 8.5% for males). The mean TAS-20 scores were 44.65 for females and 45.98 for males without any gender difference. Among the alexithymic adolescents, the share of SCOFF positive subjects was significantly higher as compared to the non-alexithymic group (32.2% vs. 11.3%). The mean SCOFF scores also differed significantly between alexithymic and non-alexithymic subjects (0.93 vs. 0.42). The association was clear in the DIF and DDF subscales of TAS-20.

The results suggest that ED symptoms are more common in alexithymic adolescents. However, the evaluation of causal links calls for longitudinal studies.

The results of clinical and epidemiological study of 2181 patients (average age-54 ± 0.8) are presented.

Inventory for clinical-anamnestic behavior sign of adaptation form of disease of patients with comorbid phenomenon and standard scales for value of anxiety and depressions were used.

Patients with somatoform pain more complicated in pharmacologic treatment, have complex diagnostic procedures, sometimes surgical interventions, were are often cases of analgesic dependence 5,8 (P< 0,05). The patient with idiopathic pain (antidepressant therapy's reply 4,2 (P< 0,05) and cognitive therapy's 2,8(P< 0,05)) and organ somatizations (analgesic dependence 3,5 (P< 0,05), antidepressant therapy's effect 4,3 (P< 0,05) and the cognitive therapy's reply 3,4(P< 0,05)) almost never has decided the idea about the mental nature of agonizing somatic sensations, seldom collaborate with psychiatrists.

The phenomenon of somatization is a group of disorders in the base of which mechanisms of the psychical adaptation and behavior are. The admission of axial somatization's symptoms as mechanisms of the psychical adaptation and behavior and additional, forming by the purposeful interview of the patient, is appearing to be reasons, that is making actual questions of the effective competent communication for the optimization of therapeutic interventions. Thereby, the phenomenon of the somatization as mechanisms of the psychical adaptation and behavior is axial symptoms and cultural dependent features forming in the structure of the purposeful interview and the doctor's clinical estimation of the patient - are additional.

The current study elucidates the relations between alexithymia and several biological components of the Metabolic Syndrome (MS). We hypothesized that various facets of the alexithymia construct are differentially related to single components characterizing the MS.

Investigated were N = 101 patients with MS. To establish the diagnosis of MS according to IDFC criteria, both laboratory (lipid profile, fasting plasma glucose, type 2 diabetes) and non-laboratory (blood pressure, waist circumference, BMI) tests were included. Alexithymia was measured using the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20).

Based on alexithymia scores, patients were classified as low- (TAS-20 score ≤ 51; N = 31), moderate- (51 < TAS-20 score < 61; N = 33), or high-alexithymic (TAS-20 score ≥ 61; N = 37). The amount of moderate and high alexithymic patients proved highly significant amongst patients with MS with readily established diabetes type 2. The alexithymia score showed overall correlations with diabetes type 2 (r = 0.380, p < 0.001) and triglyceride levels (r = 0.214, p < 0.016). Correlations with non-laboratory measures were significant for high blood pressure levels (r = 0.233, p < 0.010). Linear regression models confirmed the existence of linear causal relationships for the observed correlations.

The present results suggest that the alexithymia trait is related to specific biological marker variables in the metabolic syndrome. Alexithymia may, according to our study, contribute to the aggravation of the MS.

Eating Disorders concern a growing number of people. Several instruments were created to assess symptomatology of Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. Our aim is to create and validate a short questionnaire about all the eating symptoms of Eating Disorders, including Binge Eating Disorder.

The Questionnaire of Eating Behaviours (Scheda dei Comportamenti Alimentari, SCA) is a self-administered questionnaire composed of 13 items regarding all the eating symptoms of Eating Disorders. Items are divided into 3 scales: Restrictive Eating, Weight Control Practices and Binge Eating. The SCA was given to 200 female outpatients with Eating Disorders and to 218 non-clinical adult women. Student's t test was performed to compare clinical and non-clinical subjects, one-way ANOVA was performed to compare three diagnostic subtypes (Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder). Cronbach's Alpha and factor analysis were used to validate the questionnaire.

Clinical and non-clinical subjects get significantly different scores in all the three subscales. Besides, the three diagnostic subtypes scores significantly differ on each scale. Cronbach's Alpha values show a significant inner consistency in the subscales of Restrictive Eating and Binge Eating, while the Weight Control Practices one is not very homogeneous, as expected. The factor analysis has shown the presence of three factors, corresponding to the 3 scales.

The SCA has shown to be effective in distinguishing people with Eating Disorders from non-clinical subjects. For its characteristics of being short, easy to fill in and to interpret, the SCA seems to be an instrument suitable for screening purposes.

The psychological care of patients before and after surgical intervention is a component of quality of life. We observed that anxiety and/or depression frequently appears at surgical patients and, also, in their relatives. If psychological symptoms are correlated to the biological status of the surgical patients, for their relatives emotional stress is linked to patient's somatic and psychological status.

To highlight the role of emotional stress associated to anesthetic surgical stress for the increase of the defense reaction of the organism.

37 patients and 10 relatives completed the Hamilton Scales for Depression and Anxiety. Relatives also answered an open questionnaire to explore the perceived impact of plastic surgery on their own lives.

Patients’ relatives reported more troubling and life-altering experiences than the patients and scores for anxiety were higher.

The generalization of our results is still limited by the small number of participants in this study. However, it seems that psychological needs of relatives are equal or greater than that of the patients. Scores on Hamilton Anxiety Scale don’t seem correlated to Total Antioxidant Response (TAR), but are influenced by diet; for this reason, it is useful to add synthetic exogenous antioxidants (not only natural ones) to the diet of anxious surgical patients.

The aim of this study is to assess the personality traits in a sample of Spanish anorexic and bulimic outpatients.

The revised version of the Temperament and Character Inventory was administered to 76 women attended in an Eating Disorders Unit and to 46 healthy controls. Both groups were matched by gender, age and instruction.

Diagnoses in the sample were distributed as follows: bulimia nervosa (BN) 33, binging-purging type anorexia nervosa (BPAN) 23 and restricting anorexia nervosa (RAN) 18. RAN patients were significantly younger (21.6 vs. 26.3 p < 0.01). Differences in the harm avoidance, persistence and selfdirectedness subscales of the TCI were found (see table).

In concordance with previous reports, compared with healthy controls, patients show lower scores in self-directedness. Persistence seems to be associated with restricting behaviours, whereas harm avoidance with binging and purging. RAN trends to have low scores in novelty seeking items and BN shows lower reward dependence, but this differences are not statistically significant, perhaps because of sample size.

Whiplash associated disorder (WAD) is a common, yet poorly understood condition. It has both been considered a chronic pain disorder, due to injury in neck, and a functional somatic syndrome. Based on the hypothesis that chronic WAD lies closer to functional somatic syndromes than to organic pain disorders, we compared the reported level of symptoms associated to somatization (including among others, abdominal pain, nausea, chest pain, breathlessness, skin discoloring and headache) of persons reporting WAD and persons not reporting WAD.

Data from the population based Hordaland Health Study (HUSK) in Norway 1997-99 (n = 18.581) were used. In this study, 489 participants reporting whiplash also answered questions on symptoms linked to somatic syndromes. These questions were also answered by 13.490 participants without whiplash. Comparing these two groups, independent t-tests were employed for a range of somatic symptoms. Subsequently, a linear regression model was used, enabling adjustment for possible confounding factors, including gender, anxiety, depression, education, poor sleep, benefit recipiency, physical activity, alcohol consumption, smoking, somatic diagnoses and marital status.

The WAD group reported a significantly higher prevalence of all the reported somatic symptoms (all p< 0.01), compared to the control group (mean difference in somatization tendency 0.6 SD). Adjustment for covariates, only marginally reduced the association between whiplash and somatic symptoms.

Our results indicate an association between WAD and somatic symptoms, supporting the notion that WAD should be considered a functional somatic syndrome.

Somatization (Greek, soma = body) is a disorder in which the psychological and emotional problems are expressed in physical symptoms. People prone to somatization tend to complain about the pain within the multiple organic systems although it cannot be find any organic cause.

Somatization as a separate diagnostic entity exists in the Somatoform disorder, but it occurs in a number of other psychopathological entities, such as mood disorders, panic disorder (in the attack), generalized anxiety disorder, delusions in schizophrenia, dependence on psychoactive substances, etc. Also, some personality disorders are more related to the expression of somatization. There is usually referred Histrionic, borderline, antisocial personality disorder etc.

Because of possible multiple access to somatization as a symptom of psychopathological entity, the case of patient who expressed somatization was selected for presentation. Focus was on the course of hospitalization and differential diagnostic dilemmas with which we encountered in the diagnostic procedure according to DSM-IV.

Psychiatric interview, mental status, EEG, Psychological Testing, SCID I DSM-IV.

According to the used methods it was selected -Unspecific Somatoform disorder- as solution to the dilemma in our case.

The aim of this study was to find relationship between life events stress, mental disorders and irritable bowel syndrome.

This descriptive and cross sectional study was performed during six months on the 76 patients IBS. The life events stress or Paykel, GHQ-28 and Rome III criteriaand clinical interview was used assessment.

The differences were statistically significant between life events stress and mental disorders with IBS (P< 0/05).

Psychology distress and life events stressor is important component of the IBS symptom experience and shoud be considered when treatment strategies are designed.

The objective of this Project was to develop and evaluate the applicability of a psychoeducative manual adapted to the Brazilian population reality, as first intervention on the treatment of BED patients.

The manual is printed in a brochure format, using a non-medic language, where the information is presented with images and fictitious characters, allowing patients to make use of it without supervision of a specialized professional.

The first part gives information about the disease, characteristics and symptoms, allowing the patient to identify if he has or not the disorder, partial or complete.

The second part gives the mechanisms that predispose, start and perpetuate the eating disorder, helping the patient to recognize them and develop strategies to modify his behavior.

Several versions have been improved by the authors; when a definitive format was achieved, the manual was evaluated by eight eating disorders specialized professionals, who presented their comments and suggestions on the format and contents. After implemented the changes, the 12th version was settled as final, consisting of 10 items. Then, this manual was submitted to 10 patients, to be evaluated regarding information assimilation through a questionnaire specially developed for this purpose.

This is the first psychoeducative manual for BED patients in Brazil. Its final version was considered by the patients a quick and easy to understand reading. Due to the low range of specialized professional assistance, such manual can be very relevant. Studies to evaluate the efficaciousness of this manual are currently under process.