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Filter by:This study will test the safety and effectiveness of the amino acid glycine in treating psychotic disorders in children. The drug will be given as an adjunct (in addition) to the patient's current antipsychotic medication. Children age nine to 18 with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder whose symptoms began before age 13 may be eligible for this 10-week study. Patients will be hospitalized during the course of the trial. Weekend visits home may be permitted. Children enrolled in the study will be evaluated during a two-week pre-treatment period with written tests for IQ and academic functioning and with a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan of the brain. For the MRI, the child lies on a table that slides into a large donut-shaped machine with a strong magnetic field. This procedure produces images of the brain that may help identify brain abnormalities in schizophrenia that develop in childhood. During the eight-week treatment phase, patients will receive glycine powder dissolved in water once a day, in addition to their other antipsychotic medications. They will undergo the following additional procedures during the course of treatment: 1. Comprehensive psychiatric examination 2. Blood pressure and pulse monitoring once a week 3. Blood tests every other week - About one ounce of blood is drawn per week to measure glycine levels 4. Eye movement study at week eight - Using a technique called infrared oculography, special detectors measure infrared light reflected off the child's eyes while he or she watches a moving square on a video monitor. 5. Lumbar puncture (spinal tap) once during the study - About one-half ounce of cerebrospinal fluid (the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord) is withdrawn through a needle placed in the lower part of the spine for analysis of brain chemicals. Patients who respond well may continue to receive glycine treatment through their referring physician after the study is completed. NIMH will follow patients by phone every six months and with visits at two-year intervals.
Some children with certain language disorders may not properly process the sounds they hear, resulting in language impairments. The purpose of this study is to determine if deficits in auditory temporal processing the way the brain analyzes the timing and patterns of sounds are an inherited trait. Families with auditory temporal processing deficits are sought in order to identify the genes responsible for auditory temporal processing deficits. Children and adults with a diagnosis or history of language impairment in the family and their family members both affected and non-affected are eligible for this two-part study. In Part 1, participants undergo a series of language tests and listening tests to measure various characteristics of how they perceive sound. In Part 2, they are interviewed about language disorders, learning disabilities, and other medical problems of family members. This information is used to construct a pedigree (family tree diagram) showing the pattern of inheritance of family traits. Study subjects whose pedigree indicates that language disorders may be hereditary in their family will provide either a small blood sample (1 to 2 tablespoons) or a tissue specimen obtained from a cheek swab (rubbing the inside of the cheek with a small brush or cotton swabs). The sample will be used to isolate DNA for genetic analysis.
The purpose of this study is to better understand the long-term progress of people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and related conditions such as anorexia nervosa, Tourette syndrome, and trichotillomania. This study involves the screening and follow-up of individuals with OCD and OCD-related disorders. Participants will be screened with a medical and psychiatric evaluation, questionnaires, and neurological testing. Participants will then have study visits every 4 to 12 weeks to undergo symptom and daily functioning evaluations, personality tests, blood and urine tests, memory tests, brain scans, and other clinical exams. Participants will be assessed with interviews and paper-and-pencil or computer-assisted tests. Participants may have the opportunity to participate in drug studies and to join a monthly OCD support group. At the end of the study, participants will be referred to community or private treatment centers.
OBJECTIVES: I. Determine whether the benzodiazepine alprazolam reinforces self-medication behavior in anxious patients with varying histories of using other drugs. II. Establish outpatient methods for the study of self-medication and drug reinforcement in patients vulnerable to prescription drug abuse or dependence. III. Evaluate the influence of alcohol and other non-prescription drug use as determinants of vulnerability in these patients. IV. Identify personality, attitudinal, or other variables that might predict different patterns of self-medication. V. Assess the effects of cognitive-behavioral therapy on alprazolam self-medication.
OBJECTIVES: I. Determine whether the prevalence of abnormalities on clinical vestibular (balance) tests is higher in panic disorder with agoraphobia than in uncomplicated panic disorder and nonpanic anxiety disorder. II. Determine whether the prevalence of abnormalities on audiological tests of cochlear or brainstem function is elevated in panic disorder without agoraphobia or nonpanic anxiety disorder. III. Determine whether symptom patterns can be identified that are indicative of vestibular abnormalities in panic disorder. IV. Determine whether vestibular dysfunction can be induced by psychosomatic mechanisms.
OBJECTIVES: I. Characterize inheritance patterns of mutations in patients with beta-oxidation disorders.
This research study is designed to improve understanding about voice disorders that are due to uncontrolled muscle contractions affecting the voice box. The type of voice disorder depends on which muscles of the voice box are involved. Abductor spasmodic dysphonia may lead to a weak voice. Adductor spasmodic dysphonia may result in a strangled voice. Muscular tension dysphonia may lead to a strained voice. Some of the major goals of the study are to; 1. understand how sensation from the voice box affects voice and speech production 2. develop better ways to diagnose sensation abnormalities affecting the voice box 3. determine if patients with voice disorders differ from persons without voice disorders in the way they respond to sensory information from their voice box Researchers believe that by understanding better how sensations of the voice box are presented and how the muscles in the larynx respond to those sensations they will be able to develop better treatments for patients suffering from voice disorders. ...
Bipolar disorder is a mood (affective) disorder characterized by the occurrence of alternating feelings of excitement (mania) and depression. It is a common, but serious condition, and potentially life-threatening. Patients are considered to have a rapid cycling form of bipolar disorder if they experience four or more episodes of hypomania (mild degree of mania), mania, and/or depression. Approximately 20% of the patients in bipolar clinics have the rapid cycling form of the disorder. Therefore it can be said that RCBD is not a rare condition and that it can severely impair a patient. These reasons alone justify studying RCBD. However, researchers also believe that information gathered by studying patients with RCBD can be used while studying other patients with different forms of bipolar disorder. The purpose of this study is to screen patients diagnosed as having rapid cycling bipolar disorder to see if they fit the criteria for the diagnosis and to see if they would be interested in participating in other research studies. Patients will undergo diagnostic interviews, physical examination, routine blood tests, EKG (electrocardiogram), and complete self-rating forms as part of the screening process.
Abnormalities in the re-uptake of dopamine and serotonin have been described in various neuropsychiatric disorders and substance abuse. [I-123] Beta-CIT is a recently developed radioligand for SPECT imaging of dopamine and serotonin transporters. [I-123]Beta-CIT SPECT has been used at the SPECT-lab of the Clinical Brain Disorders Branch in over fifty subjects without adverse events. Due to the trace concentrations used, a pharmacological effect of Beta-CIT is unlikely and has not been observed. The purpose of this study is to use Beta-CIT and SPECT to study the expression of dopamine and serotonin transporters in vivo in normal controls and various patient populations to address hypothesized abnormalities of the transporters in different disorders and to understand the effects of genetic variations in the genes of these transporters on their in vivo expression.
Often women are prescribed hormone replacement therapy (HRT) during the perimenopause or menopause. Hormone replacement therapy includes both estrogen and progesterone. The estrogen component of HRT helps to relieve the symptoms and has a beneficial effect on the heart and bones, but estrogen also increases the risk of uterine cancer. The progesterone component of the HRT (progestin) works to prevent the increased risk of uterine cancer. There is evidence that some women experience unpleasant mood symptoms (such as irritability, depressed mood and anxiety) while receiving hormone replacement therapy (HRT) while taking the progestin / progesterone component of the HRT. This study is designed to evaluate the ability of progestins to produce negative mood symptoms in women. Researchers intend on doing this by comparing the effects of medroxyprogesterone acetate (Provera) and a placebo inactive sugar pill. Patient's moods will be monitered based on their response to questionnaires answered in the outpatient clinic and at home. This research will attempt to answer the following questions: 1. Are progestins associated with changes in mood during hormone replacement therapy? 2. If progestins are associated with mood disturbance, is it because they are blocking the beneficial effects of estrogen?