Active clinical trials for "Psychotic Disorders"

This randomized clinical trial compares the influence of joint crisis plans (JCP) or crisis cards to reduce psychiatric coercion for people with severe and often recurring mental illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or schizoaffective disorder. Both interventions will be carried out as an integrated part of otherwise standard psychiatric in-patient and out-patient care in psychiatric units specializing in the acute or non-acute treatment of mentioned mental illnesses.

Negative symptoms, which include the loss of motivation, social withdrawal and reduced emotional expression are prominent in youth at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis. These negative symptoms lead to significant functional impairment and enduring disability in these youth. At present, there are no established treatments for negative symptoms. Recent evidence from independent studies, however, suggests two promising novel treatment approaches for negative symptoms, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), and computerized remediation strategies. The primary aim of this study is to evaluate if tDCS combined with a virtual reality-based computerized remediation (VR) is effective for treating negative symptoms in CHR youth, thereby mitigating the enduring functional disability these symptoms cause.

In this study, an APA program by web (e-APA) will be offered to two groups of participants (21 patients and 21 healthy volunteers (HV)) in remote video (use of the SAPATIC (Santé Activités Physiques Adaptées utilisant les Technologies de l'Information et de la Communication) platform developed by the company V@SI). At the same time, two control groups, a group of 21 patients and a group of 21 HV will undergo an health education program (HE) through the collaborative SAPATIC health platform of V@Si and will constitute the control groups. The content of the APA sessions will be administered by V@Si. This program offers content aimed to improve aerobic capacity and muscular strength while relying on the motivation of the participants

Stigma is a significant concern for those who experience psychosis. People with psychosis are the most stigmatised group of all mental health difficulties. There is a lack of research examining the effectiveness of psychological therapies for people who experience psychosis who are also experiencing negative impacts of stigma. To date, all studies examining stigma therapies have been conducted with outpatients and no support have been developed for inpatients. The aim of this study to conduct a pilot randomised controlled trial of a brief therapy (based on cognitive behavioural therapy)to help participants cope with stigma. It will be compared to a educational control intervention. Both therapies will last approximately two hours and be conducted in one or two sessions by the principal investigator (clinical psychologist). Participants will be given a number of questionnaires assessing a number of outcomes such as impacts of stigma, depression, recovery, and self-esteem. Participants will be assessed on these measure prior to the therapy, post therapy and at follow-up.

Primary Objective: To compare added metformin and/or added simvastatin versus no intervention in reducing or eliminating increased cardiovascular risk (as estimated by elevation in non-HDL cholesterol levels) during the treatment of schizophrenia with olanzapine. Secondary Objective(s): To compare added metformin and/or added simvastatin versus no intervention in reducing or eliminating increased cardiovascular risk (as estimated by elevation in triglyceride levels) during the treatment of schizophrenia with olanzapine. To compare added metformin and/or added simvastatin versus no intervention in reducing or eliminating increased cardiovascular risk (as estimated by C-reactive protein levels) during the treatment of schizophrenia with olanzapine

Our overall aim is to determine if the administration of guanfacine in combination with aripiprazole, olanzapine, quetiapine, and/or risperidone is significantly more effective than any of those medications alone in treating some of the cognitive impairment in schizophrenia.

The goal of the present study is to evaluate the effect of D-serine, added to antipsychotic treatment, on negative and cognitive symptoms in schizophrenia. The investigators are hypothesizing that D-serine will improve cognitive functioning and negative symptoms.

The purpose of this study is to test whether administration of levetiracetam (LEV), a commonly used anti-epileptic that alters neurotransmitter release, can reduce hippocampal hyperactivity. Specifically, we will utilize two functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques: 1) blood oxygen level dependence (BOLD) contrast will assess activity with a visual scene processing task that engages the anterior hippocampus and 2) arterial spin labeling (ASL) will assess baseline activity. This study will also assess whether patients have improvement in their symptoms after receiving LEV. Previous studies in people with psychotic disorders have shown that the hippocampus is hyperactive and more activity correlates with worsening of clinical symptoms. Therefore, the aim of this study is to use an intervention to further understand the underlying mechanisms of the hippocampus in psychosis.

Background: Cognitive deficits are a core symptom of schizophrenia even at the early stages of psychosis. To date, there has been reliable evidence that cognitive deficits are associated with outcomes in schizophrenia and early treatment could help to reduce the prominent disabling cognitive symptomatology which most schizophrenia patients still experience persistently. Outcomes in studies of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in schizophrenia patients suggest the possibility that application of transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS) with inhibitory stimulation over the left temporo-parietal cortex and excitatory stimulation over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex could affect positive and negative symptoms, respectively. Positive effects of tDCS have also been reported on cognitive symptoms. The present study protocol hypothesis is that the development and utilization of potentially effective neuroenhancement tools such as a non-invasive brain stimulation technique like tDCS for the treatment and rehabilitation of cognitive impairment in early stages of Schizophrenia may contribute to the elucidation of the nature of the complex and dynamic processes in the brain during the early stages of the disease, and may lead to a better outcome. Objectives: The aim of the present study protocol is to evaluate the efficacy of tDCS in the treatment of cognitive symptomatology in the early stages of psychosis. Methods: Sixty patients in the early stages of psychosis will be randomly allocated to receive 20 minutes of active 2-mA tDCS or sham stimulation once a day on 10 consecutive weekdays. The anode will be placed over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the cathode over the left temporo-parietal cortex. Neuropsychological and psychiatric assessments will be performed at the time of consent (baseline), at 1 and 3 months following the end of the intervention (maintenance effect).

This study compares the efficacy and effectiveness of two of the second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) most used in our society in the treatment of schizophrenia (Aripiprazole and Risperidone) and the investigators do within an assistance program of early-stage psychosis individuals of the Community of Cantabria, clinical reference for the treatment of this disease in the Spanish Autonomous Community. Patients are included in a prospective naturalistic study, open flexible-doses and randomized into one of two possible patterns of treatment that includes the protocol.