[Orientation and simultaneous visuospatial synthesis in dementia and depression]. / Orientacja i jednoczesne syntezy wzrokowo-przestrzenne w otepieniu i depresji.

The presented paper discusses the orientation processes and simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability in patients with dementia and depression. The disturbances of the orientation processes and the simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability have proved characteristic of patients with dementia. The disorder of simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability constituted one of the cognitive limits in patients with dementia. Patients with dementia aided themselves with long-term memory and the retrieval processes ability in the orientation processes. In patients with dementia simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability, orientation processes, attention, short-term memory, retrieval processes decreased together with progression of the dementia processes. The simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability in patients with depression was maintained at a high level. Memory and visuospatial learning and simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability reflected aptly the level of the orientation processes in patients with depression. Only patients with depression helped themselves with the simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability in the orientation processes. In ageing simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability decreased together with age. Notional abstract thinking was related to the orientation processes and the simultaneous visuospatial synthesis ability only in those ageing.

[About the necessity of neuropsychological assessment in the civil law]. / O potrzebie opiniowania neuropsychologicznego w postepowaniu cywilnym.

Giving expert opinions within legal psychiatry in civil cases requires more and more strict co-operation of expert psychiatrists with psychologists. Assessment of the cognitive functions with the help of neuropsychological methods is an important diagnostic element that leads to giving the right opinion. The most frequent reasons for appointing experts in psychiatry and psychology are disorders of cognitive functions as a result of various brain injuries. Dementia syndromes are particularly often subjects of doubts in preparing expert opinions as they must be distinguished from other organic dysfunctions and from the age--associated memory impairment. Considering the evidence value the most important thing is to assess all the objective data included in the medical records and subsequently to assess the testimony of the witnesses Usually people from legal circles and families of the people who make declarations of will overvalue the importance of additional examinations. Those examinations are important but they do not settle the patient's psychic state because the decisive factor is not the kind of somatic disease but the influence of that disease on the psychic state. The neuropsychologist's role in giving medical statements is going to increase together with the tendency to objectivization and qualitative assessment of intensification of respective disorders of cognitive functions when examining patients in order to give expert opinions.

[Seeking the mechanisms of disorders of cognitive deficits in dementia, depression and aging. Part I]. / W poszukiwaniu mechanizmów zaburzen procesów poznawczych w otepieniu, depresji i starzeniu sie. Czesc I.

The article includes research review in cognitive functions (orientation, memory, learning and visuo-spatial function) in dementia, depression and old age. This paper focuses on neuropsychological and anatomical mechanism progress of cognitive deficits. With reference to the quoted research we depict trends and dynamics of the distinguished cognitive functions.

[Multifactorial aspects of eating disorders]. / Wieloczynnikowe uwarunkowania zaburzen odzywiania sie.

A group of patients (52 women and 3 men) aged 12-39 with the diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (51 persons) and bulimia nervosa (4 persons) treated in the I Psychiatry Department of Medical University of Gdansk between 1972-1994 was studied. The diagnostic criteria were in accord with the DSM-IV. Among anorectic patients 45 persons were of restricting type and 6 were of bulimic type. Duration of illness was 1-14 years. Most of the patients were still students. Analysis of the aspects of eating disorders showed family conflict situations, single parents, conflicts between parents, competition at home. The patients presented fearful attitude, egocentrism, problems with acceptation of the gender role, obsessive-compulsive traits. In 36.7% cases minimal brain damage symptoms were found. Statistically significant weight gain was observed after neuroleptic treatment.

[Memory processes in endogenous depression]. / Procesy pamieci w depresji endogennej.

The thesis aims to answer the questions about the profile of mental ability in endogenous depression and to decide whether self-estimation of depressive symptoms influences the results achieved by patients in memory tests. Fifty six patients suffering from endogenous depression have been examined. The following methods have been applied: Mini Mental State Examination, Benton Visual Retention Test, Beck Depression Inventory, hold tests: Vocabulary, Information, Comprehension and Digit Span of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS), Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure, Auditory Verbal Learning Test, DCS Weidlich. General status of cognitive functions correlates with the profile of specific kinds of memory results, particularly with delayed memory. Self-estimation of depressive symptoms intensity is mostly influenced by memory capacity, visuomotorial factor, functions of perception and lingual factor. High correlation between verbal and non verbal learning shows uniform influence of depression on the process of learning.

[Selected psychopathological and psychological questions in an inpatient after a suicide attempt]. / Wybrane problemy psychopatologiczne i psychologiczne u osób hospitalizowanych po próbie samobójczej.

Authors have analysed 120 inpatients who committed suicidal attempt. Diagnoses in 83 women and 37 men aged between 14 and 73 years according to DSM-V classification were analysed. Patients aged between 14 and 27 constituted 60%, while those more than 28 years old 40% of suicidal attempts. In the outcome of diagnoses the analysis showed that because of psychotic and nonpsychotic mental disturbances among them, patients after suicidal attempt needed scrutinised psychiatric and psychological evaluation. In consulted patients the clinical diagnoses distinguished: conversive reaction (54%), endogenous depression, dysthymic depression, personality disturbances characteropathic type and adolescent crises. Endogenous and dysthymic depression were predominantly found in persons above 28th, they constituted 26% of all diagnosed patients. In particular age groups no characteristic psychopathological diagnoses were found. The diagnosis of characteropathic type of personality disturbances was distributed most regularly.