Background: To compare the efficiency of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) with those of exercise and acetaminophen for the treatment of pregnancy-related low back pain (LBP) during the third trimester of pregnancy. Methods: This prospective study included 79 subjects (≥32 gestational weeks) with visual analog scale (VAS) pain scores ≥5. Participants were divided randomly into a control group (n = 21) and three treatment groups [exercise (n = 19); acetaminophen (n = 19); TENS (n = 20)]. The VAS and the Roland-Morris disability questionnaire (RMDQ) were completed before and 3 weeks after treatment to assess the impact of pain on daily activities. Results: During the study period, pain intensity increased in 57% of participants in the control group, whereas pain decreased in 95% of participants in the exercise group and in all participants in the acetaminophen and TENS groups. Post-treatment VAS and RMDQ values were significantly lower in the treatment groups (p < 0.001). VAS and RMDQ scores indicated a significantly greater degree of pain relief in the TENS group than in the exercise and acetaminophen groups (p < 0.001). No adverse effect of TENS application on pregnant women was observed during the study. Conclusion: TENS is an effective and safe treatment modality for LBP during pregnancy. TENS improved LBP more effectively than did exercise and acetaminophen.

Higher levels of attentional impulsivity, particularly in patients suffering from sexual, aggressive or religious obsessions suggest a common diathesis for a dysfunction in neural correlates corresponding to these symptoms. The results of our study may promote further studies conducted with more advanced and objective neuropsychometric tests evaluating features of the clinical course, neurobiology and the response to OCD treatment.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for pain management is a therapy that aims to modify thoughts and behavior to be more realistic and balanced. There are limited number of studies to assess the efficacy of CBT for patients with pharmacotherapy-resistant chronic migraine in our population. We aimed to invstigate the effects of CBT for patients with refractory chronic migraine on pain attack frequency, disability, severity, anxiety and depression. Fourteen patients with refractory chronic migraine who were referred from the headache clinic to the psychiatry department and regularly attended CBT sessions at least once every 2 weeks for at least 6 months, were included in the study. After 2 sessions of psychiatric evaluation, the subjects had 12 40-min CBT sessions and were given relaxation exercises. The Hamilton depression and anxiety inventories, visual analogue scale for assessing the severity of pain, and the Migraine disability assessment (MIDAS) test were used before and after CBT. The mean Hamilton depression scores before and after CBT were 29.07 ± 7.74 and 14.21 ± 7.7, respectively (p \ 0.0001). The mean Hamilton anxiety scores before and after CBT were 26.8 ± 11.7 and 11.7 ± 2.6, respectively (p \ 0.0001). The mean VAS scores before and after CBT were 8.07 ± 0.91 and 3.71 ± 1.32, respectively (p \ 0.0001). The mean MIDAS scores before and after CBT were 55.5 ± 20.4 and 20.12 ± 16.6, respectively (p \ 0.0001). Our results showed that CBT had made a statistically significant difference on pain severity, number of migraine attacks and disability in patients with refractory chronic migraine. CBT should be considered in this patient group.

Introduction: The aim of this study is to assess clinical characteristics and smoking profiles of individuals diagnosed with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and compare their nicotine dependence status with healthy controls for better understanding the mutual and complex relationship between ADHD and smoking. Methods:We included the following participants in the study: 40 adults with the diagnosis of ADHD, 40 participants who visited the smoking cessation polyclinic without any psychiatric disorders, and 40 healthy controls. A sociodemographic data form, Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS), Adult ADD/ADHD Diagnosis and Evaluation Inventory, and Fagerstrom Nicotine Dependence Test (FNDT) were administered to the participants.Results: Mean age of the ADHD, nicotine dependence, and control groups was 28.68±7.22, 34.17±8.60, 33.70±7.45 years, respectively. Percentages of females and males were 27.5% and 72.5% in the ADHD group, 50% and 50% in the nicotine dependence group, 47.5% and 52.5% in the control group. The attention-deficit scores in the ADHD, nicotine dependence, and control groups were 21.18±5.05, 7.23±3.96, 4.75±2.65, respectively (p=0.001), whereas the hyperactivity scores were.73±5.84, 6.43±4.2, and 3.58±2.27, respectively (p=0.001). The related features scores were 56.53±12.96, 24.30±13.93, and 13.13±6.11, respectively (p=0.001), whereas the WURS scores were 61.88±12.69, 23.03±16.07, 11.90±8.15, respectively (p=0.001). FNDT scores in ADHD and nicotine dependence groups were 5.83±2.11 and 6.20±2.74, respectively (p=0.495).Conclusion: Considering the argument of ADHD being an independent risk factor for nicotine dependence, we think the co-occurrence of the smoking addiction and ADHD symptoms in the context of dopamine dysregulation is important in the clinical setting. Treatment modalities and of preventive strategies should be considered while keeping this in mind.

AimAlthough current standard treatment for migraine headache is medication, high levels of psychological comorbidity has led to migraine influencing by cognitive, emotional and environmental factors, as well as biological. Viewing migraine in a biopsychosocial framework introduces the possible utilisation of psychological treatment options, such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of CBT for chronic migraine.MethodologyThirty-five participants diagnosed as chronic migraine were recruited from Headache Clinic. According to inclusion criteria 14 participants, underwent bi-weekly lasting 30 minutes CBT sessions for 6 months, were administered Hamilton Anxiety Scale, Hamilton Depression Scale, Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and the Migraine Disability Assessment Scale (MİDAS) before and after CBT.FindingsNine of the participants were female and 5 male. Mean age of group was 34.35 ± 8.17. Duration of illness was 13.07 ± 7.18 and 12 of participants had the history of a psychiatry illness whose diagnoses were depression (7), anxiety disorder (4) and post-traumatic stress disorder (1). Nine of the patients had prophylactic migraine treatment. There were statistically significant difference in Hamilton Depression scores between before CBT (29.07 ± 7.74) and after CBT (14.21 ± 7.7); in Hamilton Anxiety scores before CBT (26.8 ± 11.7) and after CBT (11.7 ± 2.6); in VAS scores before CBT (8.07± 0.91) and after CBT (3.71 ± 1.32); in frequency of migraine attacks between before CBT (10.85 ± 3.50 day) and after CBT (4.92 ± 2.70 day) and in MİDAS before CBT (55.5 ± 20.4) and after CBT (20.12 ± 16.6) (P < 0.05).ConclusionCBT might reduce the severity of symptoms in migraine patients especially with the comorbidity of psychiatric illness.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.