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FreeSurfer is a popular software package to measure cortical thickness and volume of neuroanatomical structures. However, little if any is known about measurement reliability across various data processing conditions. Using a set of 30 anatomical T1-weighted 3T MRI scans, we investigated the effects of data processing variables such as FreeSurfer version (v4.3.1, v4.5.0, and v5.0.0), workstation (Macintosh and Hewlett-Packard), and Macintosh operating system version (OSX 10.5 and OSX 10.6). Significant differences were revealed between FreeSurfer version v5.0.0 and the two earlier versions. These differences were on average 8.8 ± 6.6% (range 1.3-64.0%) (volume) and 2.8 ± 1.3% (1.1-7.7%) (cortical thickness). About a factor two smaller differences were detected between Macintosh and Hewlett-Packard workstations and between OSX 10.5 and OSX 10.6. The observed differences are similar in magnitude as effect sizes reported in accuracy evaluations and neurodegenerative studies.The main conclusion is that in the context of an ongoing study, users are discouraged to update to a new major release of either FreeSurfer or operating system or to switch to a different type of workstation without repeating the analysis; results thus give a quantitative support to successive recommendations stated by FreeSurfer developers over the years. Moreover, in view of the large and significant cross-version differences, it is concluded that formal assessment of the accuracy of FreeSurfer is desirable.

The aim of the current study was to replicate the finding that cognitive impairments are not or inversely associated with sensitivity to stress in a sample of 25 patients diagnosed with psychotic disorder. The results indicated that impairments in performance on the Trailmaking Test and the Stroop Color Word Test were inversely associated with sensitivity to stress in daily life, whereas impairment in a subtest of the Behavioral Assessment of Dysexecutive Syndrome (BADS) was not associated with stress-sensitivity. The data thus show that in some instances cognitive functioning is not, and in other instances is inversely associated with momentary sensitivity to stress. Cognitive impairment and affective reactivity thus appear to be independent or mutually exclusive mechanisms in psychosis, suggesting competing causal pathways.

Although (hypo)manic symptoms are common in adolescence, transition to adult bipolar disorder is infrequent. To examine whether the risk of transition to bipolar disorder is conditional on the extent of persistence of subthreshold affective phenotypes. In a 10-year prospective community cohort study of 3021 adolescents and young adults, the association between persistence of affective symptoms over 3 years and the 10-year clinical outcomes of incident DSM-IV (hypo)manic episodes and incident use of mental healthcare was assessed. Transition to clinical outcome was associated with persistence of symptoms in a dose-dependent manner. Around 30-40% of clinical outcomes could be traced to prior persistence of affective symptoms. In a substantial proportion of individuals, onset of clinical bipolar disorder may be seen as the poor outcome of a developmentally common and usually transitory non-clinical bipolar phenotype.

FreeSurfer is a popular software package to measure cortical thickness and volume of neuroanatomical structures. However, little if any is known about measurement reliability across various data processing conditions. Using a set of 30 anatomical T1-weighted 3T MRI scans, we investigated the effects of data processing variables such as FreeSurfer version (v4.3.1, v4.5.0, and v5.0.0), workstation (Macintosh and Hewlett-Packard), and Macintosh operating system version (OSX 10.5 and OSX 10.6). Significant differences were revealed between FreeSurfer version v5.0.0 and the two earlier versions. These differences were on average 8.8±6.6% (range 1.3-64.0%) (volume) and 2.8±1.3% (1.1-7.7%) (cortical thickness). About a factor two smaller differences were detected between Macintosh and Hewlett-Packard workstations and between OSX 10.5 and OSX 10.6. The observed differences are similar in magnitude as effect sizes reported in accuracy evaluations and neurodegenerative studies.

FreeSurfer is a popular software package to measure cortical thickness and volume of neuroanatomical structures. However, little if any is known about measurement reliability across various data processing conditions. Using a set of 30 anatomical T1-weighted 3T MRI scans, we investigated the effects of data processing variables such as FreeSurfer version (v4.3.1, v4.5.0, and v5.0.0), workstation (Macintosh and Hewlett-Packard), and Macintosh operating system version (OSX 10.5 and OSX 10.6). Significant differences were revealed between FreeSurfer version v5.0.0 and the two earlier versions. These differences were on average 8.8±6.6% (range 1.3-64.0%) (volume) and 2.8±1.3% (1.1-7.7%) (cortical thickness). About a factor two smaller differences were detected between Macintosh and Hewlett-Packard workstations and between OSX 10.5 and OSX 10.6. The observed differences are similar in magnitude as effect sizes reported in accuracy evaluations and neurodegenerative studies.

Background A useful way of operationalising treatment effects in routine outcome assessment data may be to assess the rate at which unmet needs at time point t change to met needs at time point t + 1. Methods Data were obtained from the local Cumulative Needs for Care Register (CNCR), a cumulative data set of needs (Camberwell Assessment of Need), psychopathology, well being and functioning of psychiatric patients living both inside and outside the hospital, in a circumscribed geographical area. Results In the group of relatively new patients, the number of met needs (sum score) increased over time. Higher unmet needs sum score predicted higher met needs at time point t + 1. Unmet needs in the areas of accommodation, household skills, self-care, safety to others (in new patients only), alcohol, drugs, money and benefits were associated with met needs on these items at time point t + 1, but there was no such association for occupation/daytime activities, psychotic symptoms, psychological distress and self-harm. Conclusion Treatment outcomes in psychiatric practice can be usefully tracked and quantified using the rate of change from unmet to met needs. Needs in the area of the ability to live independently may represent outcomes that are more sensitive to treatment effects than needs in the realm of psychopathology and daytime activities.

BackgroundAlthough (hypo)manic symptoms are common in adolescence, transition toadult bipolar disorder is infrequent.AimsTo examine whether the risk of transition to bipolar disorder isconditional on the extent of persistence of subthreshold affectivephenotypes.MethodIn a 10-year prospective community cohort study of 3021 adolescents andyoung adults, the association between persistence of affective symptomsover 3 years and the 10-year clinical outcomes of incident DSM–IV(hypo)manic episodes and incident use of mental healthcare wasassessed.ResultsTransition to clinical outcome was associated with persistence ofsymptoms in a dose-dependent manner. Around 30–40% of clinical outcomescould be traced to prior persistence of affective symptoms.ConclusionsIn a substantial proportion of individuals, onset of clinical bipolardisorder may be seen as the poor outcome of a developmentally common andusually transitory non-clinical bipolar phenotype.

Objectives: To investigate to what degree radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation, induced by a mobile phone placed on the chest, impacts cardiac rhythm. Design: n=1, single blinded pilot study Setting: Academic hospital, Maastricht, the Netherlands Participants: One healthy female 24 years old participant. Interventions: The participant underwent four experimental sessions, spread over four days. A session consisted of four consecutive 15 minute conditions, three with a sham phone and one with a dialling mobile phone. The participant was blind for the condition. During each condition, per-millisecond electrocardiac activity (lead V4) and radiofrequency radiation was recorded jointly. Primary outcome measure: Heart rate. The association with radiation was analysed at two levels, (i) at macrolevel, based on averaged condition effects, and (ii) at microlevel, focusing on radiation peak-related effects within the exposure condition. Results: The macrolevel analysis clearly indicated that heart rate was lowered during the radiation exposure condition. The heart rate during the preceding and subsequent sham phone condition was respectively 1.014 beats/minute (p < 0.001) and 1.009 beats/minute (p < 0.001) higher compared to the radiation exposure condition. In order to conduct radiation-detector controlled microlevel analyses, 142 critical segments were identified, in which a radiation-free period was followed by a radiation peak. The heart rate during the radiation-free period showed a mean increase, whereas the radiation peak period was associated with a mean decrease in heart rate (time*period interaction: p=0.001). Thus, the macrolevel finding was confirmed at microlevel. Conclusions: Mobile phone radiation may impact heart rate, suggesting urgent further study to assess physiological safety parameters.

Background: A disorder of self-monitoring may underlie the positive symptoms of psychosis. The cognitive mechanisms associated with these symptoms may also be detectable in individuals at risk of psychosis. Aims: To investigate (a) whether patients with psychosis show impaired self-monitoring, (b) to what degree this is associated with positive symptoms, and (c) whether this is associated with liability to psychotic symptoms. Method: The sample included: individuals with a lifetime history of non-affective psychosis (n=37), a genetically defined risk group (n=41), a psychometrically defined risk group (n=40), and control group (n=49). All participants carried out an action recognition task. Results: Number of action- recognition errors was associated with psychosis risk (OR linear trend over 3 levels: 1.12,95% CI 1.04-1.20) and differential error rate was associated with the degree of delusional ideation in a dose-response fashion (OR linear trend over 3 levels: 1.13, 95% CI 1.00-1.26). Conclusions: Alterations in self- monitoring are associated with psychosis with evidence of specificity for delusional ideation. In the risk state, this is expressed more as failure to recognise self-generated actions, whereas in illness failure to recognise alien sources come to the fore. Declaration of interest: None. Adapted from the source document.