International Neuropsychiatric Disease Journal

The studies on phytochemical, nutraceutical profiles and potential medicinal values of Allium sativum linn (lilliaceae) on bacterial meningitis were evaluated against bacterial meningitis pathogens. The methods employed in this study were validation of phytochemical screening which was done according to standard methods, determination of nutritional composition was carried out using analytical automated instruments (Atomic Absorption Spectrometers) and evaluation of in vitro antibacterial activities of the extracts against clinical isolates using agar-well diffusion and broth dilution methods. The clinical isolates of meningitis pathogens, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Neisseria meningitides, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and Escherichia coli were obtained from Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Shika-Zaria. The collected bulbs of A. sativum (600 g) were washed and air dried under shade for 2 hours and the dry scaly outer covering was peeled-off to obtain the fresh garlic cloves which were then divided into three parts of 200 g each. These three portions were crushed separately for cold extraction. The first portion was homogenized and poured into a muslin cloth to squeeze out the juice, while second and third portions were homogenized and submerged into 500 ml of 96% ethanol and 500 ml of distilled water respectively for 24 hours and both filtered after thorough shaking. The first and second portions were freeze dried, while the third portion was evaporated over water bath at 50°C to obtain the powdered yield. The phytochemical screening of A. sativum extracts (JEAS, EEAS and AEAS) revealed the presence of alkaloids, carbohydrates, cardiac glycosides, fats & oils, flavonoids, saponins and steroidal terpenoids. The results obtained as nutritional profiles from analytical automated machines analysis showed that A. sativum contained all classes of food nutrients such as carbohydrate, protein, fat and oils, dietary fibres, and vitamins together with zeolite herbominerals (nanopharmacologic effects). JEAS and EEAS extracts were potent in (0.94 ± 0.01 minutes), (0.99±0.04) and antibacterial activities while and AEAS (1.20±0.04) showed low activity, inhibiting the clinical bacterial isolates Neisseria meningitides, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and Escherichia coli with diameter of zone of inhibition ranging from 15-36 mm at concentrations of 10, 15, 20 and 25 mg/ml. It produced significant (p<0.05) antibacterial activity while EEAS and AEAS showed low activities, except Klebsiella pneumoniae which was resistant to the three extracts concentrations used. The extracts inhibited the growth of the bacterial isolates in a concentration dependent manner with MICs ranging between 0.04-1.56 mg/ml while MBCs was 0.10-2.50 mg/ml respectively the findings from this study could be of interest and suggest the need for further investigations with a view to use the plant in novel drug development for BM therapy. The outcome of this study could therefore justify the ethnomedical and folkloric usage of A. sativum to treat bacterial meningitis locally.

Background: Mental health awareness surveys that assess the broad knowledge of various stakeholders including public nationwide help in the development of relevant strategies to enhance their poor mental health literacy.

Objective: The aim of this telephone polling survey was to measure mental health awareness of general public in Saudi Arabia.

Method: The participants (n=1068) randomly selected from 13 regions of Saudi Arabia were contacted by 15 trained Saudi girl interviewers for conducting 30-minutes individual interview in Arabic language using a self-designed 15-item questionnaire.

Results: About one fourth of responders (23%) reported either personal or family member having mental disorder, and depression and anxiety disorders were the commonest problems. Stigma against mental disorders and consulting health professionals, misperceptions towards psychotropics and social exclusion and shame were variably reported by the participants. Though the participants perceived barriers to have access to MH services, 55% of responders reported MH services were of good to excellent grade, and the two most common help-seeking modes were psychiatric and religious and spiritual service providers.

Conclusion: Although this community participatory mental health polling survey is found to have encouraging mental health literacy of public participants, evidence based training programs and campaigns for further improving people mental health literacy are needed in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in the Arabian Gulf countries.

The neurodynamic effect of graded hydrocortisone treatment on rhinencephalic and telencephalic brain regions was studied in an experimental animal design that sampled isolated hippocampal, basal nucleic and frontal cortical brain regions of male wistar rats. Four test groups, ii to v were administered 2.5 mg, 5 mg, 7.5 mg and 10 mg respectively. The study period lasted for 6 weeks. Results were statistically analyzed and considered significantly different at a confidence interval of 95%. There was a progressive decline in olfactory response as dose of hydrocortisone treatment was increased. There was a significant dose-dependent decrease in assayed frontal cortical acetylcholine and hippocampal glutamate in brain tissue homogenates. Similar change was observed in brain tissue calcium, magnesium and sodium. For the behavioral, histological and biochemical tests conducted in this study, 6 weeks hydrocortisone treatment showed adverse manifestations from 5 mg, which was more obvious from 7.5 mg. The outcome of this study revealed a possible dose-dependent adverse effect of hydrocortisone on specific brain regions responsible for learning, memory, olfaction and psychosocial behavior.

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate thyroid status in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) patients and its response to donepezil and vitamin B₁₂ supplement therapy for 6 months.

Design: Case-Control Observational study.

Place and Duration: Department of Biochemistry, GGMC & Sir J. J. Group of Hospitals, Mumbai, India between March 2017 and July 2019.

Methodology: Case-Control study comprised of 71 AD patients and 70 healthy controls above 60 years of age.  Blood serum samples were analyzed for thyroid hormones levels by the chemiluminescence method. AD patients were treated with donepezil (5 mg/day) and vitamin B₁₂ supplement (1.5 mg/day) and thyroid profile was observed at intervals of 3 and 6 months. Statistical evaluation was done by using IMB SPSS statistics version 25.

Results: Serum levels of thyroid hormones were low in euthyroid AD patients when compared with controls at the baseline level [T3 (120.64 ± 20.64 vs 127.8 ± 17.29), T4 (7.71 ± 2.34 vs 7.54 ± 1.85), FT3 (1.2 ± 0.13 vs 2.26 ± 0.63) and FT4 (0.79 ± 0.08 vs 1.29 ± 0.27)] except TSH which was increased in AD [TSH (2.71 ± 1.19 vs 2.34 ± 0.65)]. During follow-ups at 3 and 6 months, there was a slight decrease in TSH levels in response to the therapy.

Conclusion: The AD patients were euthyroid with low T3, FT3 and FT4 serum levels and high TSH serum levels. Thyroid hormones might play a role as markers for disease progression. Donepezil and vitamin B₁₂ therapy could not benefit restore the normal thyroid functioning in a period of 6 months. Further longitudinal research with larger cohort might help in elucidating thyroid dysfunction in AD and develop novel therapeutic strategies.

Aims: The objective of this review has been to highlight the importance of non-specific and painful symptoms of depression since sometimes the person does not notice or is not able to talk about their emotional symptoms. This leads us to refine the search for symptoms that can mask depression and not be treated properly. This is important as it is predicted that by 2020 depression will be the leading cause of disability in the world.

Method: We review some articles that relate depression to painful symptoms.

Results: Patients with the major depressive disorder may present, as initial complaints, multiple somatic complaints, nonspecific and especially pain, which complicates their diagnosis and sometimes leads them to not receive treatment for depression, complicating its evolution and deteriorating the quality of life.

Conclusion: Depression can have many forms of presentation, people can complain of multiple non-specific symptoms, which do not allow a diagnosis of medical disease so it will be necessary to look for affective symptoms, investigate factors that trigger their condition to achieve an adequate diagnosis, provide the indicated medication and allow them a better quality of life.