Deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus selectively enhanced affective processing and subjective well-being and seemed to be antidepressive. Levodopa and deep brain stimulation had similar effects on emotion. This finding may provide new clues about the neurobiologic bases of emotion and mood disorders, and it illustrates the important role of the basal ganglia and the dopaminergic system in emotional processing in addition to the well-known motor and cognitive functions.

No abstract

This case report describes the longstanding course of a delusion of pregnancy in a 51-year-old schizophrenic Ghanaian woman suffering from multiple symptoms of delusions and hallucinations. In addition to these symptoms, the patient was affected by multiple coenesthesias, ego disturbances and bizarre delusions of being influenced by external forces. A multi-causal aetiology of delusional pregnancy is discussed.

Only a few case studies have been reported about antipsychotic-induced hepatitis for second generation antipsychotics. A 52-year old patient with recurrent schizoaffective psychosis was switched over from clozapine to aripiprazole monotherapy. Six weeks afterwards the otherwise asymptomatic patient presented herself with skin and scleral jaundice. Hepatic laboratory parameters and liver histological evaluation were initiated. Blood tests performed in outpatient clinic revealed significantly pathological hepatic laboratory parameters (total bilirubin 17.9 mg/dl, direct bilirubin 9.0 mg/dl, GOT 1613 U/l, GPT 2585 U/l). The liver histological evaluation shows a portal inflammatory cellular reaction with eosinophilia. After immediate discontinuation of aripiprazole medication, the elevated laboratory parameters normalised. We assume that the patient had suffered drug-induced hepatitis with predominant cytolysis. This is the first case of aripiprazole-induced hepatitis described in the literature.

Ethnic German immigrants are a risk group for mental disorders.