TY - JOUR
T1 - Alexithymia, suicidal ideation, and serum lipid levels among drug-naive outpatients with obsessive-compulsive disorder
AU - De Berardis, Domenico
AU - Serroni, Nicola
AU - Marini, Stefano
AU - Rapini, Gabriella
AU - Carano, Alessandro
AU - Valchera, Alessandro
AU - Iasevoli, Felice
AU - Mazza, Monica
AU - Signorelli, Maria
AU - Aguglia, Eugenio
AU - Perna, Giampaolo
AU - Martinotti, Giovanni
AU - Varasano, Paola A.
AU - Pressanti, Gabriella Lucidi
AU - Di Giannantonio, Massimo
PY - 2014
Y1 - 2014
N2 - 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-naive 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-Asberg 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.
AB - 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-naive 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-Asberg 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.
KW - Alexithymia
KW - obsessive-compulsive disorder
KW - suicide ideation
KW - serum lipid levels
KW - drug-naive
U2 - 10.1590/1516-4446-2013-1189
DO - 10.1590/1516-4446-2013-1189
M3 - Article
C2 - 24554275
SN - 1516-4446
VL - 36
SP - 125
EP - 130
JO - Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria
JF - Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria
IS - 2
ER -