RESUMEN
Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder in children. Parents with epileptic children have many psychosocial care needs. So the main goal of this study was to evaluate depression and anxiety in Iranian mothers with epileptic children. We identified 30 mothers of children with epilepsy and 30 mothers of children without epilepsy with children aged between 8 and 12 years who met the study criteria. In all children with epilepsy, the mothers were the main caregivers and all these children lived in two-parent families. Children in the control group were in the same age. Ninety-eight percent of children in the control group lived in two-parent families with the mother as the main caregiver. All mothers fulfilled the Beck Depression Inventory [BDI] and Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. According to these data, BDI scores were significantly higher in the mothers of epileptic children [mean of Beck score=16.5] compared to the control group [mean of Beck score=9.8]. The total, Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory scores for mothers of children with epilepsy were 100.3, 51.7 and 48.6. However, these scores in the control group were 86.9, 45.1 and 41.8. These differences were statistically significant. In a second analysis, using the demographic data, we did not find any statistically significant relation between anxiety or depression and the mothers' job, children's medication and other demographic variables. Neurologists and psychiatrists need to develop better programs for adequate management of psychiatric disorders in mothers with epileptic children
RESUMEN
The current study was performed to evaluate the cognitive improvements of the chronic schizophrenic patients treated with risperidone in comparison with those treated with haloperidol according to Wisconsin Card Sorting Test [WCST]. In a double blind clinical trial, 65 patients with a diagnosis of chronic schizophrenia were randomly allocated into two groups. They received a 7 days washout and then during an eight weeks period one group was treated with risperidone 4-8 mg daily while patients in the other group received haloperidol 10-15 mg daily. Patients of the two groups were assessed by positive and Negative Syndrome Scale [PANSS] and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale [BPRS]. Patients' cognitive abilities were assessed by WCST. Treatment side effects were also evaluated in both groups. The overall PANSS score, the scores of the positive and negative subscales and BPRS scores revealed that risperidone was significantly superior to haloperidol in the treatment of psychotic symptoms [p<0.001]. Risperidone caused less marked dyskinetic side effects in comparison with halopridol [p<0.001]. Haloperidol produced more symptoms of parkinsonism and tardive dykinesa than risperidone. The positive cognitive effect of risperidone was significantly better than haloperidol at 4[th] [p<0.001] and 8[th] [p<0.001] weeks. Apart from being more effective in improving positive and negative symptoms of psychotic disorders, risperidone is also more beneficial in reducing the symptoms of cognitive impairment in chronic and long standing form of schizophrenia. It also seems to be better tolerated than haloperidol