In a consecutive series of 169 outpatients with Parkinson's disease the frequency of depression was compared in two groups: those who developed Parkinson's disease before the age of 50, and those who developed the disease after 50. Major depression was found in 36% of patients with early onset and in 16% of patients with late onset Parkinson's disease. This significant difference disappeared when both groups were matched for duration of Parkinson's disease. A stepwise regression analysis in both the early onset and the late onset Parkinson's disease showed, a significant correlation only between depression scores and the impairment scores of activities of daily living.

A survey of 80 opiate addicts included in a detoxification program was conducted at the Institute on Addictions in Belgrade. In addition to a dependence diagnosis and mental disorders based on DSM-III-R, we applied a Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ) that measures the 3 major personality dimensions: novelty-seeking (NS), harm avoidance (HA) and reward dependence (RD). When compared with a control group (a sample of Yugoslav undergraduate students), the opiate addicts demonstrate significantly high NS dimension as well as significant divergences of HA and RD subscales. The surveyed opiate addicts demonstrate a high percentage of personality disorders specifically in cluster B. The personality dimensions of opiate addicts showed certain temperament traits, such as: impulsiveness, shyness with strangers, fear of uncertainty and dependence. NS, HA and RD determined by temperament specifics may be an etiological factor in forming of a personality disorder, an affective disorder as well as of a drug choice.

No abstract

No abstract

Impaired initiation and slowed execution of movements are two of the principal characteristics of Parkinson's disease (PD). A similar pattern of movement impairments (psychomotor retardation) can be seen frequently in patients with idiopathic depression. In addition, affective disorders have been frequently reported in patients with different basal ganglia disorders. The aim of this study was to determine whether there are some particularities in the cerebral electrical activity during the preparation and execution of voluntary internally paced movements (i.e., Bereitschaftspotential, BP) in depressed PD patients, which can distinguish them from non-depressed PD patients, as well as from healthy controls. The BPs were recorded in 16 patients with idiopathic PD, eight of whom were depressed (PD-D), and eight of whom were not (PD-ND). Additional recordings were taken from a group of eight age- and sex-matched healthy subjects. Depression was classified using the Research Diagnostic Criteria and the two PD groups were matched for age, disease severity, and disease duration. The amplitudes and slopes of the BPs from PD patients were generally smaller than in controls, but there was no specific pattern of BP changes that distinguished depressed from non-depressed PD patients. In addition, there was no particular association between measures of depression severity and BP parameters. The data suggest that presence of depression in PD might not have any additional deteriorating influence on already impaired preparation for self-paced spontaneous movements.