ABSTRACT
The term alexithymia is a complex multidimensional construct that literally means “no words for mood”. There are two kind of alexithymia: primary and secondary or otherwise called trait and state alexithymia. There is still an unresolved debate about the nature of alexithymia as a trait or a state. The etiology of alexithymia has not been completely determined because of the numerous factors influencing its development. Alexithymia has been observed among patients with a variety of psychiatric disorders and medical conditions. The aim of this systematic review was to review studies investigating the correlations between alexithymia, depression and anxiety in breast cancer surgery women. Literature search was conducted in January, 2016. PubMed and Scopus databases were used to find studies for inclusion in the systematic review. Correlations between alexithymia, depression and anxiety evidenced that alexithymia may be considered a stable personality trait and an important factor to the development of anxiety symptoms. However, limitations of these studies must be considered and further investigations are needed.
ABSTRACT
Objective: As obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a relatively common psychiatric disorder with a significant suicide risk, the individuation of potential biomarkers of suicidality, such as cholesterol levels, may enable recognition of at-risk subjects. Therefore, the aims of this study were to: 1) evaluate potential differences in clinical and laboratory parameters between patients with and without alexithymia and compare them with healthy controls; and 2) investigate which clinical and laboratory variables were associated with suicidal ideation. Methods: 79 drug-naïve adult outpatients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of OCD were recruited. Alexithymia was measured with the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), suicidal ideation was assessed with the Scale for Suicide Ideation, and depressive symptoms were evaluated with the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS). Serum lipid levels of 40 healthy controls were also evaluated. Results: Alexithymic patients had altered serum lipid levels in comparison with non-alexithymics and healthy controls. Using a linear regression model, the presence of symmetry/ordering obsessions and compulsions, lower HDL-C levels, and difficulty in identifying feelings dimension of the TAS-20 were associated with higher suicidal ideation. Conclusions: Alexithymic individuals with OCD may exhibit dysregulation of the cholesterol balance, which in turn may be linked to suicidal ideation. Further prospective studies are required to elucidate this potential association. .