Effects of acute tryptophan depletion on affective processing in first-degree relatives of depressive patients and controls after exposure to uncontrollable stress

Rationale Individuals with a family history of depression may be more likely to develop depression due to an innate vulnerability of their serotonergic system. However, even though serotonergic vulnerability may constitute a risk factor in the development of depression, it does not seem to be sufficient to cause a depressive episode. Based on previous data, it is suggested that stress may be a mediating factor. Objectives This study examined the role of serotonin (5-HT) in stress coping in individuals with or without a family history of depression. Materials and methods Nineteen healthy first-degree relatives of depressive patients (FH+) and 19 healthy controls without a family history of depression (FH-) were tested in a double-blind placebo-controlled design for affective processing under acute stress exposure, following acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) or placebo. Results Significant negative effects were found of stress on affective processing in FH- and FH+. In addition, FH- responded slower to positive words after stress only following ATD, whereas FH+ responded marginally slower under stress already after placebo and before stress following ATD. Conclusion Acute stress exposure reduces positive affective bias; supporting the role of stress as an important predecessor in the development of depression. Furthermore, FH+ may be more susceptible than FH- to the negative effects of stress as well as to the negative effects of ATD. The results support the assumption that the 5-HT system is involved in stress resilience and may be more vulnerable in first-degree relatives of depression

Placebo and other psychological interactions in headache treatment

We present a theory according which a headache treatment acts through a specific biological effect (when it exists), a placebo effect linked to both expectancy and repetition of its administration (conditioning), and a non-specific psychological effect. The respective part of these components varies with the treatments and the clinical situations. During antiquity, suggestions and beliefs were the mainstays of headache treatment. The word placebo appeared at the beginning of the eighteenth century. Controversies about its effect came from an excessive interpretation due to methodological bias, inadequate consideration of the variation of the measure (regression to the mean) and of the natural course of the disease. Several powerful studies on placebo effect showed that the nature of the treatment, the associated announce, the patients’ expectancy, and the repetition of the procedures are of paramount importance. The placebo expectancy is associated with an activation of pre-frontal, anterior cingular, accumbens, and periacqueducal grey opioidergic neurons possibly triggered by the dopaminergic meso-limbic system. In randomized control trials, several arms design could theoretically give information concerning the respective part of the different component of the outcome and control the natural course of the disease. However, for migraine and tension type headache attacks treatment, no three arm (verum, placebo, and natural course) trial is available in the literature. Indirect evidence of a placebo effect in migraine attack treatment, comes from the high amplitude of the improvement observed in the placebo arms (28% of the patients). This figure is lower (6%) when using the harder criterium of pain free at 2 h. But these data disregard the effect of the natural course. For prophylactic treatment with oral medication, the trials performed in the last decades report an improvement in 21% of the patients in the placebo arms. However, in these studies the duration of administration was limited, the control of attacks uncertain as well as the evolution of the co-morbid psycho-pathology. Considering the reviews and meta-analysis of complex prophylactic procedures, it must be concluded that their effect is mostly linked to a placebo and non-specific psychological effects. Acupuncture may have a slight specific effect on tension type headache, but not on migraine. Manual therapy studies do not exhibit difference between manipulation, mobilization, and controls; touch has no proven specific effect. A comprehensive efficacy review of biofeedback studies concludes to a small specific effect on tension type headache but not on migraine. A review of behavioral treatment conclude to an interesting mean improvement but did not demonstrated a specific effect with the exception of a four arm study including a pseudo meditation control group. Expectation-linked placebo, conditioning, and non-specific psychological effects vary according clinical situations and psychological context; likely low in RCT, high after anempathic medical contact, and at its maximum with a desired charismatic healer. The announcements of doctors strongly influence the beliefs of patients, and in consequence their pain and anxiety sensibilities; this modulates the amplitude of the placebo and the non-specific psychological effects and is therefore a major determinant of the therapeutic success. Furthermore, any repetitive contact, even through a placebo, may interfere positively with the psychopathological co-morbidity. One has to keep in mind that the non-specific psychological interactions play a major role in the improvement of the majority of the headache sufferers

Italian guidelines for primary headaches: 2012 revised version

The first edition of the Italian diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines for primary headaches in adults was published in J Headache Pain 2(Suppl. 1):105–190 (2001). Ten years later, the guideline committee of the Italian Society for the Study of Headaches (SISC) decided it was time to update therapeutic guidelines. A literature search was carried out on Medline database, and all articles on primary headache treatments in English, German, French and Italian published from February 2001 to December 2011 were taken into account. Only randomized controlled trials (RCT) and meta-analyses were analysed for each drug. If RCT were lacking, open studies and case series were also examined. According to the previous edition, four levels of recommendation were defined on the basis of levels of evidence, scientific strength of evidence and clinical effectiveness. Recommendations for symptomatic and prophylactic treatment of migraine and cluster headache were therefore revised with respect to previous 2001 guidelines and a section was dedicated to non-pharmacological treatment. This article reports a summary of the revised version published in extenso in an Italian version

Trastuzumab‐Related Cardiotoxicity in Early Breast Cancer: A Cohort Study

Concerns have been raised about the cardiac safety profile of trastuzumab for the adjuvant treatment of early stage breast cancer in clinical practice. We assessed trastuzumab-related cardiotoxicity and its predictors in a large cohort of Italian women. Methods. Through a record linkage between four regional health care databases, we identified the rate of severe cardiac adverse events among women treated with trastuzumab for early breast cancer in Lombardy. The cumulative risk of cardiotoxicity was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method, and independent predictors were assessed using the Cox model. Results. Of 2,046 trastuzumab users, 53 (2.6%) experienced at least one hospitalization for a cardiac event, and there were two cardiac deaths. The cumulative risk of cardiotoxicity increased up to 2 years after starting treatment, reaching a plateau at 2.8%. The risk was low (0.2%) among young women, whereas the incidence was approximately 10% in women aged ≥70 years, irrespective of cardiovascular risk factors. Age and history of cardiac disease were strong predictors of cardiotoxicity, with a hazard ratio of 11.3 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.5-36.6) for women aged ≥70 years as compared with those <50 years of age. Hazard ratio was 4.4 (95% CI: 2.1-9.5) for women with a history of cardiac disease compared with those without a history of cardiac disease. Conclusions. Cardiotoxicity of trastuzumab varies considerably across subgroups of patients. The long-term safety profile was less favorable than in the largest clinical trial. Strategies to reduce cardiotoxicity in high-risk women should be investigated

Development of red flags index for early referral of adults with symptoms and signs suggestive of Crohn’s disease: an IOIBD initiative

Background and Aims: Diagnostic delay is frequent in patients with Crohn’s disease (CD). We developed a tool to predict early diagnosis. Methods: A systematic literature review and 12 CD specialists identified ‘Red Flags’, i.e. symptoms or signs suggestive of CD. A 21-item questionnaire was administered to 36 healthy subjects, 80 patients with irritable bowel syndrome (non-CD group) and 85 patients with recently diagnosed (&lt;18 months) CD. Patients with CD were asked to recall symptoms and signs they experienced during the 12 months before diagnosis. Multiple logistic regression analyses selected and weighted independent items to construct the Red Flags index. A receiver operating characteristic curve was used to assess the threshold that discriminated CD from non-CD. Association with the Red Flags index relative to this threshold was expressed as the odds ratios (OR). Results: Two hundred and one subjects, CD and non-CD, answered the questionnaire. The multivariate analysis identified eight items independently associated with a diagnosis of CD. A minimum Red Flags index value of 8 was highly predictive of CD diagnosis with sensitivity and specificity bootstrap estimates of 0.94 (95% confidence interval 0.88–0.99) and 0.94 (0.90–0.97), respectively. Positive and negative likelihood ratios were 15.1 (9.3–33.6) and 0.066 (0.013–0.125), respectively. The association between CD diagnosis and a Red Flags index value of ≥8 corresponds to an OR of 290 (p &lt; 0.0001). Conclusions: The Red Flags index using early symptoms and signs has high predictive value for the diagnosis of CD. These results need prospective validation prior to introduction into clinical practice

Development of red flags index for early referral of adults with symptoms and signs suggestive of Crohn’s disease: an IOIBD initiative

Background and Aims: Diagnostic delay is frequent in patients with Crohn’s disease (CD). We developed a tool to predict early diagnosis. Methods: A systematic literature review and 12 CD specialists identified ‘Red Flags’, i.e. symptoms or signs suggestive of CD. A 21-item questionnaire was administered to 36 healthy subjects, 80 patients with irritable bowel syndrome (non-CD group) and 85 patients with recently diagnosed (<18 months) CD. Patients with CD were asked to recall symptoms and signs they experienced during the 12 months before diagnosis. Multiple logistic regression analyses selected and weighted independent items to construct the Red Flags index. A receiver operating characteristic curve was used to assess the threshold that discriminated CD from non-CD. Association with the Red Flags index relative to this threshold was expressed as the odds ratios (OR). Results: Two hundred and one subjects, CD and non-CD, answered the questionnaire. The multivariate analysis identified eight items independently associated with a diagnosis of CD. A minimum Red Flags index value of 8 was highly predictive of CD diagnosis with sensitivity and specificity bootstrap estimates of 0.94 (95% confidence interval 0.88–0.99) and 0.94 (0.90–0.97), respectively. Positive and negative likelihood ratios were 15.1 (9.3–33.6) and 0.066 (0.013–0.125), respectively. The association between CD diagnosis and a Red Flags index value of ≥8 corresponds to an OR of 290 (p < 0.0001). Conclusions: The Red Flags index using early symptoms and signs has high predictive value for the diagnosis of CD. These results need prospective validation prior to introduction into clinical practice