To screen 100 women for anxiety symptoms during pregnancy and postpartum at the primary health center “Zvezdara”.

One thousand women were screened for anxiety symptoms using the GAD-7 and DSM-IV. Questionnaire that covered key demographic and obstetric information and GAD-7 and DSM-IV, were administered at the third trimester of pregnancy, and 8 weeks postpartum. Women were identified as at high risk for anxiety, cut-off scores of 5, 10, and 15 were taken as the cut off points for mild, moderate, and severe anxiety, respectively.

Ten percent of the sample was screened positive for mild anxiety symptoms during pregnancy. Subsequently, efforts were made to follow-up women with a postnatal GAD-7 and 7.2% percent were screened positive during postpartum.

Clinicians should be aware of the frequency and level of anxiety symptoms during pregnancy and postpartum. Therefore, it is very important to identify women at high risk. Be aware that GAD is one of the risk factors that complicate pregnancy.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Sex differences in depression and antidepressant response in humans are modestly studied and results are controversial. Experimental studies using animal models may provide insights that could be useful in clinical trials.

The objective is to summarize findings from preclinical studies on sex differences and suggest how such preclinical research might be of use in clinical research.

Specifically it is aimed to summarize evidence for both sexes in relation to the phenotype of depression, its endophenotype and the antidepressant response.

A selection of experimental studies on sex differences in stress and antidepressant response was performed and their findings were linked to potential confounders or methodological issues that might obscure the results of clinical trials.

In preclinical studies, behavioral indices and models are adjusted for both sexes, in order to properly identify sex differences in primary outcomes. This is not routinely happening in clinical studies when using depression rating scales, which is the analogue of behavioral indices. Moreover, preclinical studies show sex differences at the baseline behavioral response and underlying mechanisms that often converge following antidepressant treatment. This is also a neglected issue in human studies. Finally, preclinical research suggests that when researching on potential biomarkers for depression and antidepressant response sex should be an important factor to consider.

Cautious exploitation of findings on sex differences from preclinical research could improve the design and quality of clinical studies for disease biomarkers and novel antidepressants and facilitate the drug development in a gender aware manner.

NK has received honoraria and travel support from Janssen-Cilag, Lundbeck, Sanofi-Aventis, Medochemie Generics and Elpen S.A. CD has received honoraria from Janssen-Cilag and travel support from Boehringer Ingelheim. None of those is relevant to this study.

In the country, the most prevalent form of violence against women is physical abuse/maltreatment or wife/partner battering based on both records of the Philippine national police, and the women in especially difficult circumstances.

This study looked into the psychological effects of abuse and battering on wives-partners.

This paper will also give a description on how battered wives acquire a learned helplessness behavior due to uncontrollable events or situations.

The methods used were structured interview method and case method, and interview with a psychiatrist in the hospital where the three cases had consultations.

Wife battering refers to violent acts such as psychological, sexual or physical assault by an assailant against his partner with the intent of controlling by inducing fear and pain. It is a common incident being violated under RA 9262. Three cases were studied. One was stabbed 12 times by her live in “matador” partner who works in a slaughter house. The second case was about a partner who was forced to do sexual favors for her husband that were animalistic and perverted. On the third case, while married, she noticed that the man was also sexually perverted. He also raped their daughter.

All three cases also manifested depression in various forms with varying symptoms. Case A was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (evaluation made by the psychiatrist). Case A manifested symptoms of depression, panic of being attacked again by assailant who is at large.

The author has not supplied his/her declaration of competing interest.

According to previous literature, there are important differences, based on gender, on the external factors that affect psychiatric visits of individuals. Females are, in general, more likely to report being affected by family and emotional issues whilst men are less likely to do so.

To examine gender differences in external factors affecting psychiatric visits.

To investigate whether females report different external factors, which impact on the decision to visit a psychiatrist, compared to males.

In this study, there were 1205 participants, out of them 685 were males (56.8%) and 520 females (43.2%). The mean age was 45.54. Convenience sampling method was used and participants were recruited from the general hospital of Nikaia, “Ag. Panteleimon”, in Athens, Greece, from 01/01/2012 to 31/12/2015. The data were analysed through the SPSS software.

There were significant gender differences in external factors reported for psychiatric visits, as Chi2 (8): 185.608, P < 0.001. More specifically, more women reported being affected by family problems (5.5%) compared to men (2.6%). Additionally, more females reported being affected by emotional issues (7%) compared to men (5.6%) and psychological issues were more important for women (13.9%) compared to men (7.5%), as well. However, more men reported addictions as the external factors impacting on psychiatric visits (23.1%) compared to women (6.6%).

There are significant differences in the external factors affecting psychiatric visits between men and women. Further investigating such differences could help us better understand the reasons affecting the individuals’ decision to seek psychiatric help.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

We report the case of a 41-year-old woman brought by her husband for behavioral disorder during the last week. As background, she had her first vaginal delivery after a risky pregnancy a fortnight ago, which required uterine arteries embolization for intense uterine bleeding; and an adjustment disorder eight years ago.

The patient presents a wordy and inadequate speech, as well as insomnia for the last seven nights. She has injuries in both of her hands due to intensive cleaning of her home and genitalia. Her condition is fluctuant, remaining for hours in the bathroom after breastfeeding and behaving strangely at night, with an irritable mood and being unable to care for their child.

She also has a fever of 39 °C, with thrombocytosis (850,000 platelets) and a c-reactive protein up to 20 as relevant alterations, attributed to mastitis and consequences of the recent intervention. Olanzapine at a dose of 10 mg per day was introduced after stopping breastfeeding, with very good tolerance and complete clinical remission within a few days, with the diagnosis of postpartum psychosis and suspected affective disorder of the bipolar spectrum.

Puerperal psychosis is misdiagnosed in at least 50% of cases, with a prevalence of 1–2/1000 births, and appears more frequently between the 3rd and 9th day after delivery. The risk for both mother and child is severe and it must be treated immediately, being its evolution in general favorable. Most of the risk factors and clinical manifestations for this condition are described in this case.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

There are not many studies about affirmative competence and practices among mental health professionals working with lesbian, gay, and/or bisexual (LGB) clients.

The objectives of this research are to assess the levels of affirmative competence and practices of professionals in Ibero-American countries.

We aim to compare differences regarding gender, country of origin, religious beliefs, political orientation, sexual orientation, age, education, marital status, and possessing specific training related to working with LGB clients, in order to determine the predictive association of the variables under study.

The sample consists of 630 therapists from various countries various Ibero-American countries: 23% from Portugal, 23.2% from Brazil, 19.1% from Spain, 6.7% from Mexico, 6.7% from Argentina and 18.6% from other countries. Ages ranged from 19 to 75 years old, with a mean age of 41.46 years. The socio-demographic questionnaire, the Sexual Orientation Counselor Competency Scale, and the Affirmative Practice Questionnaire were the measures used.

The results show statistically significant differences when comparing marital status, sexual orientation, political orientation, religious beliefs, level of education, and specific training concerning LGB issues. Age, gender, and country of residence show no statistically significant differences. The linear regression model demonstrates that there is a significant predictive value between affirmative competence and practices with LGB clients.

This study indicates that mental health professionals should undergo some type of academic or professional training and/or possess experience in regards to working with LGB clients, in order to enhance their approach when working with this population.

The author has not supplied his/her declaration of competing interest.

The complex phenomenon of violence against women is determined by gender relations that, from a historical and social construction of female and male, and the biological differences which gives unequal power between men and women. This results in increased vulnerability of women, exposing them to physical, psychological and sexual violence. The history of violence in the early life of trapped women can contribute to their involvement in crimes and misdemeanors.

To review the production of national and international scientific knowledge about the effects of violence on women's health before her incarceration.

Meet the publications about the consequences of violence on women's health before she was imprisoned.

Integrative review of scientific literature to answer: “What are the implications of violence on women's health before their incarceration?” Studies of the last 5 years delimited in the databases LILACS, PUBMED and PsycInfo. Selected primary studies with women incarcerated people over 18 years, in Portuguese, English and Spanish language. Excluded studies that addressed violence inside the prison and wife as perp. An instrument for identification of studies and their categorization was used.

Sixteen selected articles that have addressed the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, suicide, drug abuse, sexual abuse and re-victimization (where the abuser was usually a family member or intimate partner).

There is a lack of a specific instrument to investigate the occurrence of violence against women before being arrested. Scientific and policy initiatives are required to develop specific intervention strategies for women incarcerated victimized before prison.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Violence is a social and relational problem of humanity. When coming across a feminine jail population, the violence problem can take diverse proportions. Beyond being perpetrators of some sort of violence, these women can also be victims throughout their lives and even during their period of imprisonment.

Describe the social representations that imprisoned women have concerning daily experiences in prison.

Knowing the meaning of daily experience in prison to women.

Qualitative exploratory-descriptive field study, carried through with 15 prisoners of the feminine prison of Ribeirão Preto (SP-Brazil). A semi-structuralized interview was used. Results submitted to the content analysis technique.

“Daily experiences with violence in prison”: they revealed feelings of abandonment and indifference to their health; they denounced suffering physical and psychological violence from employees and other female prisoners; the relation between them is marked by conflicts and aggressions. “Consequences of the arrest in the women's lives”: complained about the loss of contact with their familiars; there were relieves about lack of support and system's indifference for the readjustment in society.

This study contributed as stimulus and reference for the implementation of other researches with populations of prisons, amongst them the ones that aim to establish strategies for the reintegration of these women in society and the shift of paradigms related to them. Moreover, with the intention of supplementing researches with incarcerated women, we suggest studies that also have familiars and professionals (or visitors) as subjects.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Violence against women, committed by an intimate partner, is a serious public health problem. On an international scope it has been researched the relation between intimate partner violence and cognitive aspects of aggressors.

To investigate if couples use violence to resolve conflicts and if there are differences in cognitive aspects of men in couples where there is intimate partner violence when compared to couples who have a harmonious relationship.

The Revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2) was used. The cognitive aspects of male partners was investigated by Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-III), certain factors such as verbal and executive functions, to compare the testing results of men who have committed violence against their partners with those who did not.

Thirty-one couples with intimate partner violence police reports and 31 couples who, according to their own perceptions, said to maintain harmonious marital relationship. The comparisons between groups allowed observing that even among couples who judge to be in a peaceful relationship, violent behaviors were detected. These behaviors tend to be naturalized and not considered as violence by partners. In regard to men's cognitive aspects, especially those related to WAIS-III verbal skills and impulse control, they possibly exert some influence to intimate partner violence.

The possible influence of cognitive aspects of the perpetrator on violence against women could be reduced through long-term actions, especially those concerned to early education, since this is the appropriate way to culturally change and to develop satisfactory social and cognitive skills of the individual.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Five to 8% of women of reproductive age suffer from moderate to severe symptoms of premenstrual syndrome associated with substantial distress or functional impairment.

To determine the efficacy, tolerability and acceptability of Vitex agnus castus (VAC, chaste-berry) preparations for treatment of premenstrual syndrome (PMS).

After an extensive literature search all randomized controlled trials of VAC in women with PMS and/or premenstrual dysphoric disorder were included.

We found 17 randomized controlled trials of VAC in the treatment of PMS of which 14 studies could be included in the quantitative analysis. All trials, except one, found the Vitex agnus castus preparation to be more efficacious than placebo, pyridoxine and magnesium for either total symptom score or individual symptoms or symptom clusters. Unfortunately, the majority of trials is hampered by a high risk of bias. The pooled effect of VAC in placebo-controlled trials was large (Hedge's g: −1.21; 95% CI: −1.53 to −0.88), but heterogeneity extremely high (I2 = 91%). We could not single out distinct factors that could explain this heterogeneity. The funnel plot and Egger's tests suggest the presence of bias over the full set of studies and effect sizes.

Although meta-analysis shows a large pooled effect of VAC in placebo-controlled trials the high risk of bias, high heterogeneity and risk of publication bias of the included studies preclude a definitive conclusion. The pooled treatment effects should be viewed as merely explorative and, at best, overestimating the real treatment effect of VAC for PMS symptomatology.

P.S. reports personal fees from H. Lundbeck A/S, outside the submitted work. The other authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

In today's societies, pressures from the idea of thinness are omnipresent and lead to a corporal dissatisfaction with an excessive preoccupation of the body's image. Obese persons are often targets of stigmatization and are vulnerable to negative feeling about their physical appearance.

To evaluate the worries towards the weight and the shape of the body among obese women.

Our study was a transversal study, descriptive and analytic. A total of 42 obese women were included. Obesity was defined by body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 and divided into 3 classes: class I: moderate obesity (30 ≤ BMI ≤ 34.9); class II: severe obesity (35 ≤ BMI ≤ 39.9); class III: morbid obesity (BMI≥40). Patients were studied by mean of body shape questionnaire (BSQ-34) (Considering score BSQ < 80 lack of altered body image perception and score > 140 excessive preoccupation).

The mean age of participants was 33.6 years. The average BMI was 37.42 kg/m2 (30.45–56.26 kg/m2). Third (35%) of women had a high educational level, 41.4% were inactive, and 70.8% had an average socioeconomic level.

The average BSQ score was 108.31 (47–188). The majority of women (78.1%) had excessive preoccupation about their body image. The BSQ score was correlated to morbid obesity (P = 0.014). Women aged between 20 and 3 years were significantly more preoccupied about their body image (P = 0.046).

Majority of obese women were preoccupied about their body image. Young women and those having morbid obesity seemed more preoccupied about their body image.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

The work was initiated to study peculiarities of medical and social problems of the female opium addiction.

We examined 56 female opiate addicts aged from 18 to 56 (mean age 31.8 ± 1.09 years) hospitalized at the tertiary detox center (Tashkent). Twenty of the examinees (35.7%) were managed for the first time, 36 patients (64.3%) being treated iteratively.

Seventeen women were employed, only three of them were working in their specialization. Thirty-nine patients were either unemployed or engaged in the unskilled labor, that is, the one being out of tune with their education level. Eight examinees served penal servitudes, eleven women being detained without imprisonment. The findings reflect disorders in social adaptation of the most examinees. Drug addiction onset time varied from 19 to 25 years (22.1 ± 1.12 years in the average), but the age range from 20 to 23 was the most frequent one. Duration of episodic taking ranged from 1 month to 2.5 years (2.4 ± 0.7 months in the average). In 10 patients (20%) withdrawal syndrome has formed rapidly, in 1–2 months. Drug dose is partially associated with a patient's ability to pay and heroin accessibility.

Almost half of our 56 examinees had drug using husband, cohabitant or sex partner. Quality of remissions was found to greatly depend on a drug using sex partner.

Medical and social consequences of the female drug addiction are quite severe to mention early psycho-social disadaptation, prostitution and illegal actions, including thefts, document forgery, drug pushing.

The author has not supplied his/her declaration of competing interest.

Emotional intelligence (EI) assessment has become an effective technique in exploring individual competencies. In the medical educational, there is a growing evidence for relation between academic achievement and emotional intelligence.

To examine relation between academic achievement and emotional intelligence among medical students.

A cross-sectional study of 189 female university students using paper-based Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory: Youth Version was conducted. BarOn EQ-i:YV consists of 7 sub-scores which estimate various domains of emotional intelligence along with general mood. The academic achievement was assessed via self-reported Grade Point Average (GPA).

The average Intrapersonal score of participating students was 14.9 ± 3.4 and Interpersonal was 41.7 ± 4.9. The students scored 32.0 ± 5.0 in stress management scale and 31.9 ± 4 in adaptability. The lowest score achieved in the Emotional Inelegance scale was 32.5 whereas the top score was 71.3. The average general mood was 47.1 ± 6.4 and the positive impression ranged between 6 and 23 (17.3 ± 2.8). Positive week correlations were defined between the GPA and self-efficacy (r = 0.13) and Adaptability (r = 0.08) though these correlations were statistically insignificant (P > 0.05). Linear regression model showed that domains of Bar-On scale could explain up to 33% of changes in GPA (R2 = 0.33) with significant effect of self-efficacy, adaptability and general mood scores (P < 0.05).

Medical students showed high level of emotional intelligence which positively affect their academic achievement. Therefore, improving the emotional intelligence domains can help students improving their academic achievement.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Individuals with social anxiety disorder do poorly in residential treatment programs for the treatment of drug dependence. This is not surprising given the social nature of residential rehabilitation where group work and close social interactions are required.

Given the social nature of residential rehabilitation, we were interested in exploring whether we could address social anxiety symptoms prior to treatment entry and therefore enhance the likelihood that an individual would enter treatment and stay in treatment.

To conduct a randomised control trial to evaluate whether treatment of social anxiety symptoms prior to treatment entry improves treatment entry and retention.

Treatment seeking substance users (n = 105) completed intake assessment interviews for entry into a residential rehabilitation program. Assessment comprised the Mini International Neuropsychiatric interview (Mini), the alcohol, smoking and substance involvement screening test (ASSIST), the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS). Participants were randomised to either a four-session social anxiety intervention or treatment as usual (which was to remain on the waiting list until treatment entry). A survival analysis was conducted to examine whether the intervention impacted on treatment retention.

The treatment did not significantly impact on treatment but the intervention group were significantly more likely to remain in treatment and this effect was only found in women.

For individuals with social anxiety disorder brief evidence based intervention focused on ameliorating social anxiety symptoms (e.g., cognitive behavioural treatment) may improve the retention in treatment. This effect appears to be gender specific.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Fear of giving birth may affect many pregnant women. Fear of childbirth leads to an increase in C-section demands and the ratio of C-section births. Group therapy addresses at least 8 people at the same time, which both saves time and treatment expenses.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of group art therapy for the management of fear of giving birth.

Thirty women volunteers in the third trimester of pregnancy who were attending a public women's hospital and who had fear of giving birth were included in the study. They were randomly distributed to 2 groups. First group (n = 15) received 6 sessions of group art therapy. Second group (n = 15) received 6 sessions of psychoeducation regarding fear of giving birth. Each weekly psychotherapy session lasted 130 minutes.

By the end of the six weeks Beck depression scale (BDS) scores, Beck Anxiety Scale (BAS) scores and Wijma delivery expectancy/experience questionnaire version A (W-DEQ) scores decreased significantly in the group art therapy group (P < 0.001). In contrast, the psychoeducation group showed no significant changes in terms of BDS, BAS, W-DEQ scores.

Our study shows that group art therapy may be a promising cost-effective treatment method to manage fear of giving birth in pregnant women. The study needs to be replicated in women coming from different cultures and socioeconomic statuses to establish group art therapy for the treatment of fear of giving birth.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms may affect the physical, psychological and social lives of many women of the reproductive age group. Most women report being extra-sensitive and have difficulties with emotional regulation and some patients report worsening of their psychiatric symptoms during the premenstrual period. Early maladaptive schemas (EMS) are developed early in childhood and may remain dormant until they are activated by situations relevant to the particular schema.

We hypothesized that some of the psychological symptoms of PMS may be related to EMS activation and that this activation is due to the hormonal changes of the menstrual cycle.

Our aim was to measure any changes regarding the EMS domains between the first day of menses and 15 days later.

One hundred and ten women from an architectural and engineering firm were enrolled in the study. After ruling-out psychopathology with Symptom check-list-90-R, remaining women (n = 65) filled out young schema scale short form (YSS-SF) on the first day of menses and 15 days after menses. The time of probable ovulation was defined as 15 days after the first day of menses.

YSS-SF scores regarding the schemas of defectiveness, insufficient self-control, failure to achieve, vulnerability to harm or illness were significantly decreased by the 15th day of menses (P < 0.05). Abandonment, social isolation, dependency, enmeshment and self-sacrifice schema scores remained similar on the first and 15th days.

EMS activation may contribute to the PMS symptoms, therefore schema therapy may be an option for those women suffering from PMS.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

The author has not supplied his declaration of competing interest.

Mothers with severe mental illness may require mental health support through postnatal services. However, little is known about what services are actually provided to support parents after the postnatal period in Europe.

To explore existing services for parents with severe mental illness after the postnatal period across Europe.

Mental health specialists from major cities in nine European countries were asked to identify all health and social services available for mothers with psychosis after the postnatal period. They received two case vignettes and completed a data collection sheet for every identified service. Data analysis used semi-quantitative methods to describe the identified services.

A wide range of different services was identified with no systematic coverage of specific target groups or target problems. Likewise, their scope was extremely diverse, ranging from simple telephone advice to multi-professional support for multiple complex problems. Most services targeted parents or families in general but would at least in principle be available for parents with severe mental illness. A much smaller number specialized on targeted help for parents with mental illness.

Patchy and heterogeneous service provision may make it difficult to navigate support systems for both patients and professionals. Systematic research is required, e.g. on the use, the costs, and patient experiences in different types of services, so that service provision can be based on some evidence. Given the differences in service provision across European countries, such research might use international comparisons for evaluating the benefits of different types of services for parents with severe illnesses.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

The author has not supplied his declaration of competing interest.