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Depression and obesity represent two of the most common complications during pregnancy and are associated with severe health risks for both the mother and the child. Although several studies have analysed the individual effects of depression or obesity on the mothers and their children, the effects associated with the co-occurrence of both disorders have so far been poorly investigated. The relationship between depression and obesity is very complex and it is still unclear whether maternal depression leads to obesity or vice versa. It is well known that the intrauterine environment plays an important role in mediating the effects of both depression and obesity in the mother on the fetal programming, increasing the child’s risk to develop negative outcomes.

Background/Objectives: Suicide is the second leading cause of death among adolescents and young adults. Those suffering from psychiatric illnesses are at particular risk. Our study, conducted at an outpatient mental health facility in Northern Italy, aimed at delineating demographic and psychopathological features of youths aged 16–29 who attempted suicide and were referred to our community-based outpatient service. Methods: We identified 63 subjects, most of whom suffered from personality disorders, mood disorders, and schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Analysis of variance and post hoc pairwise comparisons were performed. Results: Inferential analysis yielded significant results in terms of age at index suicide attempt across diagnostic groups. Patients with personality disorders attempted suicide at a younger age (M = 18.70) compared to those with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (M = 23.64; η2 = 0.32). Conclusions: Our findings highlighted the period of transition from adolescence to adulthood as a stress on the need of preventive approaches towards suicidality in young people in both clinical and non-clinical settings. Moreover, the difference of age at index suicide attempt across different diagnostic groups stresses the need for tailored clinical interventions based on the specific psychopathological trajectories and natural histories of the diseases.

Background/Objectives: Esketamine-related dissociation is a transient, pharmacologically induced altered state that differs from the trait-like pathological dissociation typically observed in trauma-related conditions. While most studies have quantified these effects using the Clinician-Administered Dissociative States Scale (CADSS), patients’ subjective phenomenology and meaning-making remain underexplored. This qualitative exploratory study investigated how patients narrate, interpret, and integrate dissociative experiences occurring during intranasal esketamine treatment for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Methods: We conducted semi-structured interviews with 36 adults with TRD who were receiving intranasal esketamine in outpatient settings in Northern Italy (2022–2024). Interviews focused on the most salient dissociative experiences during treatment. Transcripts were anonymized and analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. Two researchers coded the data independently; discrepancies were resolved by consensus, and recruitment continued until thematic saturation was reached. Results: Four experiential domains emerged: sensory alteration and perceptual flow (10/36, 27.8%), time suspension and chronological drift (21/36, 58.3%), body and space alteration (20/36, 55.6%), and psychic distance from suffering (30/36, 83.3%). While a minority described transient distress or loss of control, most narratives framed dissociation as neutral or subjectively meaningful, often associated with a temporary reduction in ruminative self-focus and depressive distress. Conclusions: A narrative, phenomenological lens complements quantitative research by clarifying what esketamine-induced dissociation feels like to patients and how it is appraised in context. The findings do not imply a causal or mediating role in antidepressant efficacy. Rather, they suggest that dissociation functions as a transitional subjective state, the clinical relevance of which depends on anticipation, framing, monitoring, and integration. These results support the use of structured psychoeducation, in-session support, and post-session integration within real-world esketamine programs.

A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41380-020-01014-9

The efficacy of fluvoxamine was compared to that of amitriptyline in a double-blind 6-week fixed-dose trial of 56 inpatients with major depressive episode. The two drugs were comparable in their antidepressant efficacy. We tested the percentage of improvement in Hamilton-D scores during the first and the second weeks of treatment as predictors of efficacy for the last week. Improvement rates during the second week significantly predicted the outcome. We also investigated whether or not some symptomatological characteristics would permit prior prediction of the outcome with amitriptyline or fluvoxamine, dividing our sample into responders and nonresponders to the two drugs. The four groups showed differences in their symptomatological profiles.

Major depression is the most common mental disorder. Women are affected by depression about twice as much as men, from adolescence to adulthood, with earlier onset, greater clinical severity and longer duration of episodes. Perimenopause is a particularly vulnerable time for depressive recurrences. In addition to the physical and emotional symptoms, attention should be paid to cognitive symptoms such as learning memory, executive functions and psychomotor speed. Cognitive symptoms are often found as residual symptoms, and are closely related to the failure to recover the psychosocial functioning. During perimenopause, only 20% of women are asymptomatic. Of the remaining proportion, 70% complain of vasomotor symptoms associated with at least one among sleep disturbances, affective disorders and impaired cognitive functions. Perimenopause is a window of vulnerability for depression, but also for the onset of cognitive deficits. One of the most accepted hypotheses emphasizes the role of estrogens and their fluctuating state in this phase of life. Depression is also a risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases related to brain aging and estrogen deficiency. Finally, for the pharmacological approach to perimenopause-related affective and cognitive disorders, as well as for anxiety issues and vasomotor symptoms, a growing evidence supports the use of serotonergic antidepressants.