Schizophrenia (SCH) is considered the most serious psychiatric disorder with complex pathogenetic and pathophysiological mechanisms and inadequate treatments.

Given the association of psychotropic medication and cognitive, functional, and neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS), the use of certain measuring instruments among patients who suffer from schizophrenia is important because the quantification of treatment effects is crucial for optimizing the management of patients with schizophrenia.

To assess the efficacy of antipsychotic therapy in schizophrenic patients with predominantly negative and positive symptoms, cognitive impairment and social, occupational and psychological dysfunction.

Two main groups were selected for analysis: (N=34) included patients taking first-generation antipsychotics (FGAs) and (N=16) included patients taking second generation antipsychotics (SGAs). We used the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANNS), Global Assessment Functioning (GAF) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale (MOCA).

Out of the total number of examinees (n=50), 15/50 (30%) were males and 35/50 (70%) were females; the age of onset was 38.4±1.77; duration of illness (mean±SD) 32.5±5.00; SANS-Total (mean±SD) (23.82±9.962); SAPS-Total (mean ±SD) (28.6±9.74). Analysis of the PANSS scale bipolar index shows that patients on SGA, on average, had lower scores (2.37±12.5) compared to patients on FGA (5.91 ±9.61).

Preliminary evidence showed that there are no significant advantages in the use of atypical antipsychotics compared with typical ones in a group of patients suffering from schizophrenia. It is important to realize what role the advancement of antipsychotics has played and what still needs to be accomplished to further improve the outcome of sch patients.

Although gender differences in schizophrenia are well known, this topic in delusional disorder (DD) has been poorly studied. Previous studies have shown an earlier mean age at onset in men than in women, and in those with depressive co-morbidity.

To examine demographic and clinical differences by gender in DD.

To compare depressive co-morbidity and suicidality between men and women.

Ninety-seven patients with delusional disorder (DSM-IV-RT), attended at the Department of Psychiatry (Hospital Clinic-BCN) from 2000 to 2012, were included and followed up for one year. Demographic and clinical features at index admission, pharmacological treatment, compliance, presence of depressive co-morbidity and suicidal behaviour at follow-up were recorded. For comparisons, T, Chi-square tests and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) were used.

Seventy-six per cent were women and the most common delusional idea was delusion of persecution (74.2%). Gender differences regarding demographic features and depressive co-morbidity were not found. 22.7% of the sample presented suicidal ideation and 12.4% attempted suicide during follow-up. Women became ill later than men (50.07 vs.44.57 years), but when ANCOVA model is used with age at onset as dependent variable, sex as factor, and depressive co-morbidity and suicidal behaviour as covariates, this difference was not significant for sex effect. Women attempted suicide more often than men (13.5% vs. 8.7%) and showed less compliance during the evaluation period.

No gender differences in age at onset, types of DD, presence of depression and severity of global functioning were found. Women showed higher suicidal behaviour.

Among patients with schizophrenia there is a significant increased prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus. In addition, schizophrenia is accompanied by 15–32 years reduced life-expectancy. We hypothesize a contribution from accelerated ageing.

To compare Autofluorescence (AF) levels of patients with severe mental illness (SMI) with the general population.

To test to what extent accelerated ageing is specific for patients with schizophrenia.

Outpatients with SMI were asked to participate. AF levels were measured with the AGE-reader. Patients with diabetic mellitus were excluded from the analyses.

[Mean AF values in study-population (N=122)]

Of the 154 patients who were asked to participate 70,8% were male, 74,3% suffered from schizophrenia, 15,3% from diabetes mellitus and of 3% the skin was too dark for a reliable assessment. Only 5 patients refused to participate.

A regression analysis with age as single predictor, confirmed the predictive value of age. Compared to the general population (R2 = .60), the explained variance of R2=.23, p< .001 in the study population is low. Addition of duration of treatment or psychiatric diagnosis as predictors did not change the outcome.

AF-values indicate that accelerated ageing is present in patients with SMI.

Job satisfaction has major impact on mental health and job performance. Expected work satisfaction may influence choice of specialization within medicine.

A postal survey was conducted in 2009 among the members (N=1398) of Finnish Psychiatric Association. Out of these respondents 1132 were still working-aged. All in all 64.8% (N=738) of the working-aged members returned the survey. Only psychiatrists and residents were included in the final cohort of the study (665). Factors associated to work satisfaction were studied and a principal component analysis was conducted on factors reported to disturb working. The correlations of factors scores with job satisfaction and job control were analyzed. Spearman correlation coefficients were calculated between factor scores and work satisfaction.

Most respondents (73.8%) were satisfied with their work. Job satisfaction showed a negative correlation with increase in pace of work (rho= -0.24, p< 0.001). Job control correlated positively with job satisfaction (rho = 0.46, p< 0.001). “Working conditions” factor explained 28.6%, “leadership” 8.8%, “failure without support” 7.8%, fear at work 6.5% and “patient records” factors 5.9% of the variation of perceived harmful factors at work. “Working conditions” and “leadership” factors showed the strongest and most significant negative correlations with job satisfaction (rho = -0.45, p< 0.001, rho= -0.32, p< 0.001, respectively. “Working conditions” associated strongly and significantly with and job control (rho=-0.57, p< 0.001).

Job satisfaction may be better than expected among psychiatrists. However, employers should put emphasis on good fit between person and job to promote well-being of their employees.

Earthquakes, one of the major natural disasters, tend to be unpredictable, uncontrollable, and highly destructive. They lead to strong initial trauma and significant long-term effects such as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, or other symptoms.

In this research, posttraumatic stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms were studied among adolescents 6 months after Van-Erciş Earthquake 2011.

In the present study a total of 738 Turkish high school students, aged 13-17 years, participated in the study in Van city affected severely by the earthquake. Participants completed a set of questionnaires including the demographic measures, posttraumatic stress reactions, depression, anxiety and dissociation.

The results of the present study showed the presence of probable diagnosis of PTSD in 295 (40.69%), of anxiety in 384 (53.04%) and of depression in 245 (33.70%) of the adolescent examined. Multiple logistic and linear regression analyses were conducted to explore the predictive values of independent variables on development of posttraumatic, anxiety, depressive, and dissociative psychopathology among adolescents experienced Van earthquake.

Our results show high rates of PTSD, anxiety and depression symptoms in adolescents who survived the October 2011 Van-Erciş earthquake. Further, our results highlight the relevance of gender differences, previous psychopathology, trait anxiety, anxiety sensitivity in the response to mass trauma that should be taken into account when facing such events. Our results confirm the pervasive effects of a disaster and risk factors, such as an earthquake, for mental health in adolescents.

Factors associated with postpartum/PPT anxiety have been insufficiently investigated.

To identify correlates of PPT anxiety.

201 3-months postpartum women completed the Portuguese versions of Postpartum Depression Screening Scale (PDSS), Beck Depression Inventory/BDI-II, Profile of Mood States, Difficult Infant Temperament Questionnaire/DITQ, Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale and questions on sociodemographic variables, Lifetime history of insomnia/LTHD, Lifetime history of depressive symptomatology/LTHDS, Current insomnia, Health perception/HP, Stress perception/SP, Perceived social support/PSS, Quality of life/QOL, Health problem/complication postpartum, Sensibility to hormonal fluctuations, Type of delivery and Type of feeding. Postpartum anxiety was measured with the Anxiety/Insecurity (AI) subscale of the PDSS.

AI significantly correlated with LTHDS (rS=.32), LHI (rS=.18), Current insomnia (rS=.32), BDI-II (r=.76), SP (rS=.38), PSS (rS=.25), Perceived QOL (rS=.37), Health perception (rS=.29), Health problem in the postpartum (rS=.26), Negative Affect/NA (r=.66), Positive Affect/PA (r=.58), Conditional Acceptance/CA (r=.29) and DIT (r=.38) (all p< .01). Mean comparisons revealed that women with vs. without LHDS, with vs. without LTHI, good sleepers vs. with insomnia syndrome, high vs. low SP, low vs. high PSS, bad/very bad vs. good/very good QOL, bad/very bad vs. good/very good HP, high (< M+1DP) vs. low (>M-1DP) DIT, CA, NA and low vs. high PA had significantly higher mean scores in AI (all p< .01). Linear regression model composed of all correlated variables explained 53.7% of AI variance and showed that NA, PA and DIT are significant (p< .05) predictors of AI.

Our findings are in accordance with previous research and contribute to the progress on this topic.

Apathy and depression are the two most frequent neuropsychiatric symptoms in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related disorders. Whereas neuroimaging studies have shown different neural pathways for these two symptoms, a clinical overlap between apathy and depression is frequently described.

To describe the prevalence of apathy and depression among elderly subjects with or without dementia criteria using specific diagnostic criteria for apathy and depression.

Subjects from an ongoing cross-sectional study were recruited in 4 centers (France, Indonesia, Spain, Argentina). Apathy and depression were assessed using the diagnostic criteria for apathy and for depression. Additionally, the apathy and dysphoria domains of the NPI-C (Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Clinician), as well as the 12 domains of the original NPI (Neuropsychiatric Inventory) were assessed.

431 subjects (mean age=74.6 ± 10.4 ; gender=♂ 29%) were recruited (France=100, Spain=90, Indonesia=182, Argentina=79). Among them, 25% were healthy elderly subjects, 9% had a diagnosis of MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment), 46% had a diagnosis of dementia (including AD, Lewy body, vascular, mixed and fronto-temporal dementia). In the overall population, the prevalence of apathy and depression were respectively 41% and 25%. More specifically, the prevalence of apathy and depression in the AD sample were 67% and 25%.

Diagnostic criteria for apathy and depression, as well as the NPI-C, are recent assessment methods in the field of dementia, developed to increase the accuracy of the clinical evaluation of BPSD. It is therefore critical to propose multicenter observational studies comparing these new tools with classical assessment methods.

We reviewed current state of research involving the applications of TMS and rTMS in understanding of pathophysiology as well as the treatment of ADHD.

To assess how TMS has furthered our knowledge of neurobiological models of ADHD and to consider further research. To look at possible applications of rTMS in the management of ADHD and to evaluate the current state of research.

Literature review using an online search.

The investigative studies are small in numbers, but show some promising results. TMS adds weight to the theory of a hypofunctional dopaminergic circuit involved in ADHD pathophysiology. Treatment studies (only 2) using rTMS shows some use in treatment of ADHD, such as brief improvement in attention. These studies, however, are very preliminary, small in numbers and suffer from methodological difficulties.

TMS has provided some useful information about the likely pathophysiology of ADHD, and results show that it is a safe an effective way to investigate and treat this condition. Much more research is needed to investigate the potential applications of this technology.

To investigate the association of psychopathology and self-destructive behaviors with maladaptive Internet use (MIU) and pathological Internet use (PIU) among European adolescents.

A cross-sectional analysis.

The study was performed within the context of an on-going epidemiological study conducted in Europe entitled Saving and Empowering Young Lives in Europe (SEYLE). Schools were randomly selected in catchment areas across eleven countries: Austria, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Romania, Slovenia and Spain, with Sweden as the coordinating center.

The study sample comprised 11,357 school-based adolescents (M/F: 4,856/6,501; Mean Age: 14.9).

MIU and PIU was measured by the Young's Diagnostic Questionnaire for Internet Addiction (YDQ). Psychopathology was measured using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (Z-SAS) and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ); self-destructive behaviors were assessed by the Deliberate Self-Harm Inventory (DSHI) and Paykel Suicide Scale (PSS).

MIU and PIU prevalence was 13.4% and 4.2%, respectively; significant gender and country differences were found. A stepwise regression showed that suicidal behavior (RRR=9.8), depression (RRR=5.4), conduct problems (RRR=1.9) and symptoms of ADHD (RRR=1.7) were independently associated with PIU. Anxiety, peer relationship problems and NSSI were not independent factors in the model explaining PIU. Gender and country interactions influenced the association between psychopathology, suicidal behaviors and the YDQ score.

Among adolescents, certain forms of psychopathology and self-destructive behaviors appeared to be highly interrelated with MIU and PIU. These associations are influenced by both gender and country.

In the general population the 12-month prevalence of GAD is estimated to be about 2%. Higher prevalences have been found in primary care settings, with estimates of well over 6%. The role of sleep problems and pain in GAD remains understudied.

To evaluate the frequency of sleep problems and pain in newly diagnosed GAD patients in 5 European countries.

Non-interventional, cross-sectional survey of 1650 adult patients newly diagnosed with GAD in primary care settings. Assessment included clinical interview rating and self report data.

Mean age of the sample was 49.2 years (SD; 14.5). Mean GAD-7 score was 14.8 (SD; 3.1) and the median duration of symptoms was 12.0 months. The proportion with sleep disturbance and pain were 85.9% and 75.9%, respectively. Disturbed sleep had persisted for a median of 9.0 months and was mainly classified as “difficulty in falling asleep” (76.1%) or “nocturnal awakening” (58.8%). The median duration of pain was 6.0 months, and located mainly in the cervical region (47.0%) and upper back/limbs (40.1%). The mean number of days that patients were unable to work because of GAD-related health problems during the preceding 3 month period was 10.8 (95%CI; 9.6-12.0). The proportion of patients that visited the primary care physician and specialist during the preceding 3 months was 93.8% and 40.3%, respectively.

Sleep problems and pain are extremely frequent characteristics of GAD, contributing to the disability and work productivity profile associated with GAD as well as the patients’ use of health care resources.

Many researchers point out that combatants demonstrate various additional symptoms that do not fit into the PTSD classical clinical picture. Unfortunately, until present moment there has been a great need for a conception that will unite all the approaches.

To achieve our goal we used traditional clinical-anamnestic and clinical-psychological methods which included clinical-psychological scales of multidimensional anger assessment, aggressive behaviour scale, depersonalization scale, the Mississippi PTSD scale. We examined 557 combatants, 109 of which had the full range of PTSD symptoms, whereas the rest demonstrated subclinical manifestations of the disorder in question.

It was discovered that compulsory PTSD symptoms in combatants have specific peculiarities. Anger, being part of PTSD hyperreactive cluster, here is associated with impulsive-hostile aggression. This explosive syndrome displays features characteristic only of combatants, also it negatively influences every aspect of a combatant's life (namely, physical and mental health, vital functions, social relationships). The mentioned above syndrome is closely related with personal relations and accompanied by such pathological coping mechanisms as social avoidance/restrictions, redirection of aggression onto self and others. The noted emotional violations of basic emotions of anger and anxiety, that are compensated by depression and depersonalization and that have protective-coping character, can be termed a syndrome of affective-stressed dysfunction. This explains high comorbidity in PTSD combatants with depressive disorders.

The revealed additional symptoms and syndromes function as a whole complex of combat-related post-stress disorders and single out combatants into a peculiar group among patients with other stress disorders.

Co-Occurring Substance Misuse is associated with negative effects on psychiatric illnesses with implications for medication compliance, relapse and treatment outcome.

To contribute to research in the area of Co-occurring Substance Misuse in the Caribbean in general and Jamaica in particular.

To determine the prevalence of Co-occurring Substance Misuse, associated demographic characteristics and reports of interpersonal violence.

A cross-sectional study design was used with consenting patients admitted to the Psychiatric Unit at the University Hospital of the West Indies, Kingston over the period March 2011 to September 2011. Data collection utilized a researcher administered Background Questionnaire. Data analysis was done using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Version 18.0 (SPSS 18.0).

Of 100 consenting patients, 36 (36%) were diagnosed as having Co-occurring Substance Misuse, 31 (83.8%) males and 5 (13.5%) females, mean age 27.17 ± 9.6 years, range 14-59 years. Past year alcohol (86.5%), tobacco (86.5%), marijuana (89.2%) and cocaine (13.9%) use were reported, with the majority of patients (94.4%) reporting polysubstance use. The mean age of onset for alcohol was 14.3 yrs, tobacco, 14.8 yrs, cannabis, 16.5 yrs and cocaine 21.4 years. 70% were diagnosed with a Psychotic Disorder and 30% had a Mood Disorder. A high prevalence of interpersonal violence (77.8%) was reported.

There is a high prevalence of Co- morbid Substance Misuse in this sample of patients. Patients should be screened on admission for Co-morbid Substance Misuse and a combined, integrated approach to the management of these patients should be established.

Some coping strategies might serve as protective functions by regulating the negative emotions associated with stress, whereas others may exacerbate the effects of stress and contribute to maladaptation.

To examine the distribution of the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) scores in the Spanish sample of adolescents from the “Working in Europe to Stop Truancy among Youth” Project (WE-STAY) and study the differences according to the coping style.

Sample: 1409 pupils from 23 schools sited in Asturias (Spain) [48.55% males; mean age(SD) = 15.16(1.22)]. Instruments:

1. (1) Coping Across Situations Questionnaire (CASQ);

2. (2) BDI-II.

7.3% of the sample scored in mild depression, while 4.9% did so in moderate (BDI-II criteria). Significant differences were found by gender in BDI-II scores, females scoring higher in severe, moderate and mild depression (p< .005). Regarding to the coping style, 65.4% of the sample showed internal style. The least representative was the withdrawal style (13.9%). Significant differences were found in the coping style by gender, females scoring higher in both active and withdrawal styles (p< .050). Regarding to the relation between BDI-II scores and coping style, pupils with withdrawal style score higher in severe, moderate and mild depression (p< .000).

Although ideally would be an active style, pupils showed mainly an internal coping style (which includes assessing a situation and looking for a compromise). Coping style was related with the severity of depression. Withdrawal style (which includes denial) is related to a worsening of depression. Thereby, training coping skills may be important.

Patients presenting Personality Disorders and specially Borderline Personality Disorder are often admitted to Psychiatry Units in General Hospitals. Their impulsivity, affective disregulation and difficulties in interpersonal relations complicate the therapeutic atmosphere and cause problematic interactions with staff and other patients.

To improve staff response to behavioural problems of patients presenting Personality Disorder in psychiatric units in the general hospital.

To develop a protocol to guide staff interventions with these patients.

After analyzing the patients flow from the emergency room to discharge and the current proposals in the literature on the subject, we create a protocol addressing more frequent problems using a task group composed of psychiatrists, psychologists and nurses involved in the daily care of these patients.

A protocol is delineated guiding clinicians and staff on how to deal with assistance at the emergency room, entrance to the ward, initial contract and agreement, responses to specific problems during treatment and final discharge.

A protocol to guide the staff dealing with behavioural problem of patients with PD in the general hospital can be developed and provides clinicians with a therapeutic frame that structures the different treatment interventions.

Itzhaky (2012) found significantly lower vitamin D level in patients with schizophrenia than in healthy controls.

Measurement of vitamine-D in bipolar and schizophrenia/schizoaffective outpatients.

Determining the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in outpatients with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder in the Netherlands.

Outpatients in the Alkmaar region aged 18w65 years with a bipolar disorder, Schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder were asked to add vitamin D levels determination to the annual standard blood sample taking.

111 patients, 54 with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder and 57 with bipolar disorder, participated. 58 (53%) was male, mean age 47 (SD 9.9) years. 64 (58%) showed vitamin-D insufficiency (< 50 nmol/L), 32 (29%) vitamin-D deficiency (< 30 nmol/L). 7 (6.3%) female patients aged >50 had a serum level between 30–50 nmol/l. No significant differences were found between bipolar disorder and schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder.

To prevent osteoporosis, vitamin D supplementation is advised with vitamin D-levels below 30nmol/l or below 50 in women >50 years and men >70 years, (Dutch Health Council). Using to this criterion 39 patients (35%) of the study-population needed vitamine-D supplement. If confirmed, addition of vitamine-D levels to the annual somatic screening of patients with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder is indicated. Limitation: the impact of the season on vitamine-D levels was not corrected for in either population.

Assistance for mentally-ill patients can be performed in psychiatric units of general hospitals. At the Psychiatric Ward at Ribeirão Preto Medical School Hospital of the University of São Paulo, Brazil, the assistance offered follows the therapeutic ambient model. Group psychotherapy with clients is one of the approaches provided. The group meetings occur every day, are 1-hour long, and follow theoretical principles of group therapy with inpatients, emphasizing “here-and-now” interventions. They are coordinated by psychiatry residents and observed directly by a group therapist preceptor.

To present a framework of group psychotherapy interventions with inpatients in a psychiatric unit of a university general hospital based on the analysis of one group meeting.

To characterize a group psychotherapy intervention with inpatients in a psychiatric unit as a model for assistance and teaching.

Exploratory and descriptive qualitative research. It was performed a content analysis of an in loco transcription of a group meeting with 11 patients and 4 staff members.

The following themes were discussed: illness-, self- and other perceptions; respect and relationships within the unit; discharge. Patients had participated freely and interacted among themselves. The group’s coordinator guaranteed the meeting’s structure and facilitated discussion and exchanges among patients.

Being concerned with the group’s structure in a therapeutic ambient model is essential for its development. However, it has been noticed that the coordinator’s flexibility tends to favor patients to transpose their experiences along group meetings and the therapeutic ambient to their lives outside the hospital.

Treatment with pegylated interferon alpha (PEG-IFN-α) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is associated with depression more frequently than in other diseases treated with PEG-IFN-α.

To prospectively evaluate prevalence, severity and course of depressive symptomatology in CHC patients treated with PEG-IFN-α.

Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) was used to asses depressive symptoms in 103 subjects with CHC before PEG-IFN-α (mean dose 152.6±25.6 mcg; duration of therapy 48 weeks) and at the follow-up visits (4th, 12th, 24th, 48th, 72th week). Control group included 103 subjects with CHC without PEG-IFN-α.

There was a significant increase in HAMD scores as early as in the 4th week of PEG-IFN-a therapy compared to baseline scores (38.8% vs. 24.3%). The peak of depressive symptomatology was detected in the 12th week (mean HAMD 9.34¤ 6.93), when a half of patients (49.5%) had HAMD above 7. At the end of the treatment (48th week), 38.8 % had HAMD above 7, and in the 72nd week (24 weeks without PEG-IFN-α), prevalence of depressive symptomatology was decreased to the values lower than at baseline (23.3% vs. 24.3%). The majority (28.2%) had mild depression, whereas moderate and severe depressive symptoms were found in 20.4% and 1%, respectively. No change in prevalence of depression was detected in control group.

Present study is the longest follow-up study of depressive symptoms as a side-effect of PEG-IFN-α in CHC. Our data yielded that the severity of the symptoms was mild to moderate and tends to decrease following therapy completion.

Greece presents the highest prevalence of smokers among Western European countries with a percentage of 37.6%. Studies investigating the psychological parameters associated with habitual smoking, both among the general population as well as among health professionals are focused on anxious and depressive symptoms, without taking into account other possible psychological parameters.

To assess the implication of psychological parameters in the preservation and termination of habitual smoking.

One hundred and four health professionals were randomly selected and asked to fill out the Symptom Check List - 90 - R (SCL-90R) [1]. Participant demographics, smoking habits, amount of daily cigarette consumption, and whether or not participants displayed an intention or effort to quit smoking were all taken into account.

Among smokers, 50% displayed an intention to quit smoking. Smokers who intended to quit displayed the highest levels in subscales of somatization, anxiety, depression and anger. Daily cigarette consumption, among smokers, showed a positive correlation to subscales of obsessive-compulsive symptoms, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, anxiety as well as of anger, paranoid ideation and psychoticism.

The fact that one in two smokers indicates an intention to quit smoking is both interesting and optimistic regarding possible termination of the smoking habit. Habitual smoking is positively correlated to psychological parameters that should be taken into account when drafting a smoking intervention programme.

Truancy is a serious public health problem that affects adolescents from all countries around the world; however, little is known about the short- and long-term outcomes of potential underlying psychological and mental ill-health for those adolescents who truant. Working in Europe to Stop Truancy Among Youth (WE-STAY) project is developed, as a randomized controlled trial (RCT), in order to examine truancy, and its subsequent association with psychological distress and mental illhealth. The WE-STAY Consortium comprises 10 European countries: Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Romania, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden serving as the coordinating centre.

The main objectives of WE-STAY are to gather epidemiological information on truancy on European adolescents; and to perform interventional school-based programs for adolescents, aimed at reducing truancy rates and improve mental health of students.

The WE-STAY project is implementing and evaluating outcomes of three different kinds of preventive interventions on truancy, which is compared with a minimal intervention serving as the control arm. Validated psychometric instruments incorporated into a self-report questionnaire is administered at baseline, 1- and 12-month follow-up assessments.

The WE-STAY project is expected to generate valuable information about the behaviour of European adolescents regarding attendance to school. The existing research on truancy is very scarce and affected by methodological shortcomings that make evaluating the effectiveness of their programs difficult. The main philosophy underlying the WE-STAY project is to consider truancy as a warning-sign for psychological and social distress in adolescents.

In patients suffering from neuropsychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and depression, the neurobiological processes of decision-making are severely compromised. Some recent studies showed that social behavior and the ultrasonic vocalizations parameters in mice, expressed their emotional mood and could be used to analyze the process of decisionmaking. But, remains to highlight the modulation of these parameters under the effect of drugs, used in the treatment of these pathologies.

The aim was to find out the neuropharmacological modulators of decision-making in β2-ko adult male mice, suggested as animal model for schizophrenia, in order to test the pertinence of that model.

We first, administered clozapine used in the treatment of schizophrenia in human. Then, we analysed the social behavior as well as ultrasonic vocalizations parameters by Avisoft® in social interaction condition.

Our results show that adult male mice β2-ko emit ultrasonic vocalizations. Under the effect of clozapine, the emission of ultrasonic vocalizations are regulated by the balance between cholinergic and dopaminergic pathways. The activation of the cholinergic together with the inhibition of the dopaminergic pathways induces a negative emotional state, showed by vocalizations with low frequency of about 50 kHz. The activation of the dopaminergic with the inhibition of the cholinergic system induces a positive emotional state, showed by vocalizations with high frequency of about 60 to 80 kHz.

The administration of clozapine allowed re-establishing the social behavior parameters in β2-ko mice as well as the level of wild type mice but not about vocalization.