Oxytocin as an adjunct to risperidone tolerably and efficaciously improves positive symptoms of schizophrenia. In addition, effects on negative and total psychopathology scores were statistically significant, but likely to be clinically insignificant. The interesting findings from the present pilot study need further replication in a larger population of patients.

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This study showed that pioglitazone could be a tolerable and effective adjunctive therapy for improving depressive symptoms in bipolar disorder without type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome.

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder that causes significant impairment in socialization and communication. It is also associated with ritualistic and stereotypical behaviour. Recent studies propose both hyper-and hypoglutamatergic ideologies for autism. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of memantine plus risperidone in the treatment of children with autism. Children with autism were randomly allocated to risperidone plus memantine or placebo plus risperidone for a 10-wk, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. The dose of risperidone was titrated up to 3 mg/d and memantine was titrated to 20 mg/d. Children were assessed at baseline and after 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 wk of starting medication protocol. The primary outcome measure was the irritability subscale of Aberrant Behavior Checklist-Community (ABC-C). Difference between the two treatment arms was significant as the group that received memantine had greater reduction in ABC-C subscale scores for irritability, stereotypic behaviour and hyperactivity. Eight side-effects were observed over the trial, out of the 25 side-effects that the checklist included. The difference between the two groups in the frequency of side-effects was not significant. The present study suggests that memantine may be a potential adjunctive treatment strategy for autism and it was generally well tolerated. This trial is registered with the Iranian Clinical Trials Registry (IRCT1138901151556N10; www.irct.ir).

Celecoxib is an effective adjuvant therapy in the treatment of manic episodes (without psychotic features) of bipolar mood disorder. The mood-stabilizing role of the drug might be mediated via its action on the inflammatory cascade.

Background Across the globe, depression is a common psychiatric disorder and is the main cause of disability among adolescents. To this end, this study was conducted to screen for the prevalence of depression among secondary school female students in the city of Hamadan, in western Iran. Methods In this cross-sectional study, a total of 670 secondary school female students, within the age range of 15–18 years were investigated using multistage random sampling method. Moreover, the Persian version of Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and a researcher-designed questionnaire containing demographic variables were employed as research instruments. Analyses of the findings were made using SPSS version 16 software followed by stratified logistic regression model, which was performed for correlation analysis. Results The mean (standard deviation) age of students was 16.2 (0.68) years. The prevalence of severe depression in female students estimated by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) was equal to 52.6%. A statistically significant relationship was also observed to exist between prevalence of depression and type of school ( P < 0.001), family income (P < 0.001), living in the suburbs ( P < 0.001), and field of study at school (P < 0.001). However, no statistically significant correlation was found between depression among students and school grade, type of living with parents, father’s education and occupation, mother’s education and occupation, and family size. Conclusion Depression was prevalent among the secondary school female students examined and it significantly correlated with socioeconomic status. Therefore, periodic screening, psychological training programs, proper diagnosis of high-risk individuals in secondary schools, and early intervention among secondary school female students are urgently needed.

Saffron (.) has demonstrated antidepressant effects in clinical studies and extensive anxiolytic effects in experimental animal models. 66 patients with major depressive disorder accompanied by anxious distress were randomly assigned to receive either saffron (30 mg/day) or citalopram (40 mg/day) for 6 weeks. Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D) and Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (HAM-A) were used to assess treatment effect during the trial. 60 participants finished the study. Patients who received either saffron or citalopram showed significant improvement in scores of the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (P-value<0.001 in both groups) and Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (P-value<0.001 in both groups). Comparison of score changes between the 2 trial arms showed no significant difference (P-value=0.984). Frequency of side effects was not significantly different between the 2 groups. The present study indicates saffron as a potential efficacious and tolerable treatment for major depressive disorder with anxious distress.

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