1,720,994 research outputs found
Systematic review of drug packaging methods in body packing and pushing: a need for a new classification
No full textA systematic review of the literature regarding drug packaging methods in body packing and materials used is presented, with the aim (a) to summarize data regarding the packaging methods adopted by drug trafficking organizations, (b) to support forensic pathologists and police forces to classify and describe drug packages, (c) to propose a new classification for drug packaging techniques, and (d) to better clarify the impact of packaging methods on radiological detectability.Packaging methods have been described in 2981 cases, permitting us to summarize the different materials used and to propose a new classification for packaging method based on the materials used. Information concerning the affiliation of body packers and pushers with major (or not) drug trafficking organizations and techniques used to reduce the radiological detectability of the concealed drugs have also been collected.Besides the packaging methods described over the years, our study suggests a standardized approach for the description of drug packages based on the use of different materials and packaging procedures, which provide a possible insight to the type of drug trafficking organization involved
Commentary on confounding definitions and descriptions of body packing
No full textThe Authors would like to highlight an aspect that was overlooked in literature: the type of concealed drugs. The authors described accurately only the internal transportation of the most common illegal drugs, such as heroin, cocaine (both in liquid and solid forms), marijuana, hashish, and amphetamine. We would like to emphasize the recent trend of transportation of other illegal drugs, such as ecstasy and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), as well as a number of legal substances, such as prescription opioids, psychotropic therapeutic agents (benzodiazepines and oxycodone), and anesthetics, such as lidocaine
Caffeine. cognitive and physical performance enhancer or psychoactive drug?
Full text linkCaffeine use is increasing worldwide. The underlying motivations are mainly concentration and memory enhancement and physical performance improvement. Coffee and caffeine-containing products affect the cardiovascular system, with their positive inotropic and chronotropic effects, and the central nervous system, with their locomotor activity stimulation and anxiogenic-like effects. Thus, it is of interest to examine whether these effects could be detrimental for health. Furthermore, caffeine abuse and dependence are becoming more and more common and can lead to caffeine intoxication, which puts individuals at risk for premature and unnatural death. The present review summarizes the main findings concerning caffeine's mechanisms of action (focusing on adenosine antagonism, intracellular calcium mobilization, and phosphodiesterases inhibition), use, abuse, dependence, intoxication, and lethal effects. It also suggests that the concepts of toxic and lethal doses are relative, since doses below the toxic and/or lethal range may play a causal role in intoxication or death. This could be due to caffeine's interaction with other substances or to the individuals' preexisting metabolism alterations or diseases
A lethal case of hoarding due to the combination of traumatic and confined space asphyxia
No full textHoarding is defined as the acquisition of, and failure to discard, possessions of little use or value to others, usually associated with a significant degree of clutter in the individual’s home. We describe a case of a woman who died from a combined traumatic and confined space asphyxia, after being trapped under some of the objects amassed in her apartment. The event was considered to be accidental; by taking into account the information gathered during assessment of the scene, we believe that the accident took place while entering or exiting the apartment. It appears that the woman, who was trying to open or close the door, could have been using her leg to keep the objects piled behind the door from falling. Unfortunately the pile of hoarded objects collapsed and the woman was fatally trapped underneath them. The age and strength of the woman played an important role in the fatal incident, she was too old and weak to remove the items that had collapsed over her body. The scarcity of space between the collapsed objects and the woman, as well as the absence of external or internal signs of violent asphyxiation, or other causes of death, allowed us to establish that the death resulted from a combined mechanism of both the traumatic and the confined space asphyxiation
Systematic review of the toxicological and radiological features of body packing
No full textBody packing is the term used for the intracorporeal concealment of illicit drugs, mainly cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and cannabinoids. These drugs are produced in the form of packages and are swallowed or placed in various anatomical cavities and body orifices. Basing on these two ways of transportation a distinction between body stuffers and body pushers can be made, with the former described as drug users or street dealers who usually carry small amounts of drugs and the latter as professional drug couriers who carry greater amounts of drugs. A review of the literature regarding body packing is presented, with the aim to highlight the toxicological and radiological features related to this illegal practice. Raising awareness about the encountered mean body levels of the drugs and the typical imaging signs of the incorporated packages could be useful for clinicians and forensic pathologists to (a) identify possible unrecognized cases of body packing and (b) prevent the serious health consequences and deaths frequently occurring after the packages' leakage or rupture or the packages' mass obstructing the gastrointestinal lumen
Pharmacotherapy for hoarding disorder. how did the picture change since its excision from ocd
No full textThis brief review deals with the various issues that contributed to the creation of the new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual condition of hoarding disorder (HD) and attempts at reviewing its pharmacotherapy. It appears that after the newly founded diagnosis appeared in the literature as an autonomous entity, distinct from obsessive-compulsive disorder, drug trials are not being conducted and the disorder is left in the hands of psychotherapists, who on their part, report fair results in some core dimensions of HD. The few trials on HD specifically regard the serotonin-noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor venlafaxine, and, possibly due to the suggestion of a common biological background of HD with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, the psychostimulant methylphenidate and the noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor atomoxetine. For all these drugs, positive results have been reported, but the evidence level of these studies is low, due to small samples and non-blind designs. Regretfully, there are currently no future studies aiming at seriously testing drugs in HD
The central role of psychopathology and its association with disease severity in inflammatory bowel disease and irritable bowel syndrome
No full textBACKGROUND: Biopsychosocial models for both organic and functional gastrointestinal (GI) disorders can be found in the literature. To clarify the role of psychopathological factors and their relationship with GI symptom severity, several studies have examined them in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) - occasionally distinguishing between ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn's disease (CD) - and in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), leading to unclear results. AIMS: We aimed to evaluate the psychopathological features of IBD and IBS patients in comparison with healthy individuals and assess the association with disease severity. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty-nine IBD outpatients, of which 35 UC and 34 CD, and 75 IBS ones were consecutively recruited at the third level Gastroenterological Center of our University Hospital; 76 healthy controls were also recruited. The psychological status was assessed with the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R). RESULTS: IBD and IBS patients showed significantly higher scores on the SCL-90-R Global Severity Index (GSI) and subscales than controls (all p-values<0.001), and IBS patients showed significantly higher GSI, depression, and anxiety scores than IBD patients (all p-values<0.01). Psychopathology was comparable between UC and CD patients. In IBD and IBS patients the SCL-90-R GSI was significantly associated with disease severity (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The presence of chronic bowel symptoms, either organic or functional, is linked to a greater severity of psychopathology compared to the general population, possibly as a consequence of higher loads of stress due to the symptoms affecting everyday life. In both IBD and IBS patients, greater disease severity and worse psychopathological functioning are related
The Association of Anger with Symptom Subtypes in Severe Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Outpatients.
No full text
Psychopathological features of irritable bowel syndrome patients with and without functional dyspepsia: a cross sectional study
Full text linkBackground: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and functional dyspepsia (FD) show considerable overlap and are both associated with psychiatric comorbidity. The present study aimed to investigate whether IBS patients with FD show higher levels of psychopathology than those without FD. As a preliminary analysis, it also evaluated the psychopathological differences, if any, between IBS patients featuring the two Rome III-defined FD subtypes, i.e. postprandial distress syndrome (PDS) and epigastric pain syndrome (EPS).Methods: Consecutive outpatients (n = 82, F = 67, mean age 41.6 ± 12.7 years) referred to our third level gastroenterological centre, matching the Rome III criteria for IBS and, if present, for concurrent FD, were recruited. They were asked to complete a 90-item self-rating questionnaire, the Symptom Checklist 90 Revised (SCL-90-R), in order to assess the psychological status. Comparisons between groups were carried out using the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test.Results: Patients with IBS only were 56 (68.3%, F = 43, mean age 41.6 ± 13.3 years) and patients with both IBS and FD were 26 (31.7%, F = 24, mean age 41.8 ± 11.5 years), 17 of whom had PDS and 9 EPS. Patients with both IBS and FD scored significantly higher on the SCL-90-R GSI and on eight out of the nine subscales than patients with IBS only (P ranging from 0.000 to 0.03). No difference was found between IBS patients with PDS and IBS patients with EPS (P ranging from 0.07 to 0.97), but this result has to be considered provisional, given the small sample size of the two subgroups.Conclusions: IBS-FD overlap is associated with an increased severity of psychopathological features. This finding suggests that a substantial subset of patients of a third level gastroenterological centre with both IBS and FD may benefit from psychological assessment and treatment. © 2011 Piacentino et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd
- …
