Ercan ALTINOZ | Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Turkey (original) (raw)

Papers by Ercan ALTINOZ

To cite this article: Ali Ercan Altınöz, Selçuk Aslan, Mustafa Uğurlu, Kadir Özdel, Ahmet Emre Sa... more To cite this article: Ali Ercan Altınöz, Selçuk Aslan, Mustafa Uğurlu, Kadir Özdel, Ahmet Emre Sargın & Mehmet Hakan Türkçapar (2016): Measuring the beliefs on alcohol craving by using craving beliefs questionnaire: preliminary results of its psychometric properties in a Turkish sample, Journal of Substance Use, Abstract Introduction: Therapist can assess patients' maladaptive beliefs about drug via Craving Beliefs Questionnaire (CBQ), which was originally developed by Wright to measure beliefs about the craving phenomenon. The aim of the study is to assess the psychometric properties of CBQ and its usefulness in the patients with alcohol dependency. Method: The study population was consisted of 70 alcohol addict male patients. Beliefs about substance use questionnaire (BSU), craving beliefs questionnaire (CBQ), Beck anxiety inventory (BAI), clinical institute withdrawal assessment (CIWA), automatic thoughts questionnaire (ATQ) and dysfunctional attitudes scale (DAS) were used as the assessment tools. Results: The internal consistency of the CBQ for the alcohol dependent was adequate (Cronbach's alpha 0.94). Item-total score correlations were between 0.50 and 0.84 for alcohol-dependent patients. The principal component analysis revealed one main factor. Positive correlations found between CBQ, and BSU, BAI and ATQ. In discriminant validity analysis, mean CBQ scores were found significantly higher than occasional drinkers and none-alcohol drinkers. Conclusion: Our results supported that the Turkish version of the CBQ has an adequate instrument for evaluating alcohol-related craving beliefs in alcoholic patients. However, further studies should be performed for assessing its validity in large number of social drinkers and alcohol-dependent patient.

Purpose: Epilepsy is an extremely widespread and serious neurological disease. Although comorbidi... more Purpose: Epilepsy is an extremely widespread and serious neurological disease. Although comorbidities of psychiatric disorders are prevalent in epilepsy patients, quite often this coexistence could be overlooked. Studies in this area demonstrated that depression, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia are the most common psychiatric disorders accompanying epilepsy. Mental health problems are known to be more common in prisoners compared to general population. The present study aims to demonstrate the psychiatric comorbidities in prisoners diagnosed with epilepsy.
Method: In this study, demographic data and the psychiatric comorbidity of 200 patients who were diagnosed with epilepsy by a neurologist at Ankara Penal Institution Campus State Hospital between January 2013 and January 2014 were analyzed retrospectively.
Results: The mean age of study population was 32.6 􏰀 10.1 years. 181 of these patients were male (90.5%). 81 of 200 patients (40.5%) had a comorbid psychiatric disorder. The most common comorbid psychiatric disorders were depression (18.5%), anxiety (11%), and personality disorders (11%), respectively. Conclusion: The most common psychiatric comorbid disorders among prisoners diagnosed with epilepsy were depression and anxiety as general population with epilepsy whereas some disorders, personality disorder, substance dependence and bipolar affective disorders, were found to be more common among prisoners compared to the general population with epilepsy. It is crucial to question psychiatric symptoms and comorbidities while evaluating the patients with epilepsy, especially among prisoners.

Lithium is a well-known treatment for patients with mood disorders. Intoxication by lithium may b... more Lithium is a well-known treatment for patients with mood disorders. Intoxication by lithium may be lethal particularly in elderly due to altered pharmacokinetics, renal impairment or multiple drug use. We presented a 74-year-old female patient who had been stabile with lithium carbonate 600 mg/day for 5 years and developed lithium intoxication after bronchiolitis. She presented with altered mental status. The neurological signs resolved slowly after lithium and moxifloxacin were stopped immediately and fluid resuscitation administered. Considering possible drug interactions on elderly patients receiving lithium is essential.

SUMMARY Psychiatric disorders in the perinatal period can lead to a deterioration in one's judgme... more SUMMARY Psychiatric disorders in the perinatal period can lead to a deterioration in one's judgment and decision-making ability. These disorders may cause sensitive and complex legal and ethical issues relating to psychiatric, obstetric, and neonatal care. Clinicians should ethically respect the autonomy of the individual, but at the same time, they must assess the individual's decision-making process with the use of forensic psychiatric and consultation-liaison psychiatric practice. While the literature related to mental disorders in pregnancy has been increasing, there is limited information regarding the medico-legal and ethical aspects of this topic. Herein, we present two cases who are pregnant and have psychiatric disorders, and we aim to discuss their evaluation process of uterine evacuation.

Purpose: Epilepsy is an extremely widespread and serious neurological disease. Although comorbidi... more Purpose: Epilepsy is an extremely widespread and serious neurological disease. Although comorbidities of psychiatric disorders are prevalent in epilepsy patients, quite often this coexistence could be overlooked. Studies in this area demonstrated that depression, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia are the most common psychiatric disorders accompanying epilepsy. Mental health problems are known to be more common in prisoners compared to general population. The present study aims to demonstrate the psychiatric comorbidities in prisoners diagnosed with epilepsy.
Method: In this study, demographic data and the psychiatric comorbidity of 200 patients who were diagnosed with epilepsy by a neurologist at Ankara Penal Institution Campus State Hospital between January 2013 and January 2014 were analyzed retrospectively.
Results: The mean age of study population was 32.6 10.1 years. 181 of these patients were male (90.5%). 81 of 200 patients (40.5%) had a comorbid psychiatric disorder. The most common comorbid psychiatric disorders were depression (18.5%), anxiety (11%), and personality disorders (11%), respectively. Conclusion: The most common psychiatric comorbid disorders among prisoners diagnosed with epilepsy were depression and anxiety as general population with epilepsy whereas some disorders, personality disorder, substance dependence and bipolar affective disorders, were found to be more common among prisoners compared to the general population with epilepsy. It is crucial to question psychiatric symptoms and comorbidities while evaluating the patients with epilepsy, especially among prisoners.

Journal of Mood Disorders (JMOOD) 2016;6(2):86-7 Dear Editor, Corticosteroids are agents that are... more Journal of Mood Disorders (JMOOD) 2016;6(2):86-7 Dear Editor, Corticosteroids are agents that are effectively used in the treatment of many diseases, particularly autoimmune diseases. It is estimated that neuropsychiatric side effects

Objective: Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder that usually manifests as ar... more Objective: Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune
disorder that usually manifests as arterial or venous thromboembolic
events and recurrent spontaneous abortions. As the disease affects
many organs by obstructing the small vessels, it can present with a
variety of symptoms. Neuropsychiatric symptoms are rarely the first
to be observed. This report describes the case of a woman with no
known disease who presented at a psychiatric outpatient clinic with
aversion and cognitive impairment and was diagnosed with APS.
Conclusion: It is important to bear autoimmune diseases in mind
when evaluating young adults with complicated symptoms at
psychiatric outpatient clinics.
Keywords: Antiphospholipid syndrome; Cognitive impairment;

Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 2011

Clozapine is a well-known drug that is used in treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but granulocyto... more Clozapine is a well-known drug that is used in treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but granulocytopenia, which may lead to a potentially fatal condition such as agranulocytosis, limit its use. The question about which antipsychotic should be used after a diagnosis of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia is difficult to answer, because antipsychotics other than clozapine may also have hematologic toxicity, or they may prolong clozapine-associated granulocytopenia. In this study, we aimed to find out the incidence of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia in our treatment sample and discuss suitable antipsychotic drug options in terms of hematologic toxicity, for management of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia.

Subjects: One thousand five hundred twenty-four schizophrenia patients, treated with clozapine, were included in the study.

Methods: Patients' white blood cell counts were monitored closely. Should granulocytopenia related to clozapine be diagnosed, clozapine was stopped immediately, and a new antipsychotic that the patient did not have a history of use was begun, according to the clinical profile of the patient. Persistent low white blood cell count after the 10th day of cessation of clozapine was accepted as prolongation effect.

Results: Of the 1524 schizophrenia patients, 18 were diagnosed to have granulocytopenia, which means that 1.18% of the clozapine users developed granulocytopenia related to clozapine. Six of the patients were treated with olanzapine, 5 patients were treated with quetiapine, 1 patient was treated with risperidone, and 6 patients were treated with amisulpride after clozapine is stopped. None of the patients treated with risperidone or amisulpride showed prolonged low white blood cell count. Two of the patients treated with olanzapine (33.3%) and 2 of the patients treated with quetiapine (40.0%) showed prolonged leukopenia.

Discussion: It is noteworthy that 33.3% of the patients treated with olanzapine and 40.0% of the patients treated with quetiapine showed prolonged leukopenia. This finding is also consistent with the literature that declares higher numbers of cases about prolongation of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia for olanzapine and quetiapine than risperidone and amisulpride. After switching to another antipsychotic drug, close monitoring of white blood cell count on a daily basis for the first 2 weeks should be continued until white blood cell counts are stabilized. Quetiapine and olanzapine especially need attention after clozapine-associated granulocytopenia. Further studies with larger series and longer follow-up should be carried out.

Australasian Psychiatry, 2014

Objective: Patients with delusional parasitosis (DP) have a fixed belief of being infested by sma... more Objective: Patients with delusional parasitosis (DP) have a fixed belief of being infested by small pathogens. Typical and atypical antipsychotics are widely used for treating DP. There are limited controlled trials about the treatment of DP and the most useful antipsychotic agent is still unknown. Paliperidone treatment for DP will be demonstrated through two cases. One of these cases had previously used pimozide but had not responded to treatment. Both cases had remission from symptoms with paliperidone. There are only two case reports published about paliperidone treatment for DP.
Conclusion: Paliperidone appears to have promise in the treatment of DP; however, more case reports and controlled trials are required.

Olfactory hallucinations, known as phantosmias, are a poorly understood phenom- enon. It has been... more Olfactory hallucinations, known as phantosmias, are a poorly understood phenom- enon. It has been associated with a wide rage of differential diagnosis. However, most cases are idiopathic. The author’s presents a 70-year-old man with olfactory hallucinations as the predominant symptom of the brain metastatic small cell carcinoma in order to clarify the causal relationship. Little is known about the origin and clinical significance of phantosmias. It can even be the predominant symptom of an underlying small cell metastatic brain tumor as presented in our case. Therefore a detailed history of the symptoms along with a neurological and physical examination and routine laboratory and screening tests should be provided in order to exclude any organic causes.

With this case, it is aimed to present a patient who was followed up with a diagnosis of schizoph... more With this case, it is aimed to present a patient who was followed up with a diagnosis of schizophrenia nearly 30 years, had personality and behaviour changes added to clinical course for the last 4-5 years, had diagnostic confusion and was finally diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia superimposed on schizophrenia. Neurodegenerative diseases should be considered as either differential diagnosis or coexistence in case of symptoms such as cognitive decline or personality and behavior changes occurred in the clinical course of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders.

Abstract Aim: The relationship between serum prolactin (PRL) levels in patients with schizophreni... more Abstract
Aim: The relationship between serum prolactin (PRL) levels in patients with schizophrenia and the psychopathology, risk of relapse, symptom severity, the side effects after antipsychotics and schizophrenia subtypes are known. The aim of this study is to examine the serum PRL level difference between drug naive schizophrenia patients and healthy control group and between schizophrenia subtypes. Material and Method: 45 untreated volunteer partici- pant between the ages of 18-55 who applied to Ankara Numune Training and Research Hospital, in patient and outpatient departments of Psychiatry, di- agnosed with schizophrenia with the DSM IV-TR classification were included to study before getting treated. Participants were given sociodemographic information form; Axis-II for definitions Semi-Structured Clinical Interview, the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and Global Assessment of Functioning Scale (GAF) and biochemical measurements were made. Re- sults: The mean serum PRL levels in drug naive patients with schizophrenia were higher compared to the control group (p = 0.004). When patients with schizophrenia divided in to two groups as “paranoid” and “non-paranoid”, the mean serum prolactin levels among these groups were significantly different (p = 0.000). There was no significant relationship between serum PRL levels and GAF scores (P = 0.116) or PANSS total scores (P = 0.676) in patients with drug naive schizophrenia. Discussion: The difference between mean serum PRL levels in drug naive schizophrenia patients and schizophrenia subtypes are consistent with studies in the literature. As to use PRL levels as a marker in the clinic, further studies are needed.

Objective: Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder that usually manifests as ar... more Objective: Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder that usually manifests as arterial or venous thromboembolic events and recurrent spontaneous abortions. As the disease affects many organs by obstructing the small vessels, it can present with a variety of symptoms. Neuropsychiatric symptoms are rarely the first to be observed. This report describes the case of a woman with no known disease who presented at a psychiatric outpatient clinic with aversion and cognitive impairment and was diagnosed with APS. Conclusion: It is important to bear autoimmune diseases in mind when evaluating young adults with complicated symptoms at psychiatric outpatient clinics.
Keywords: Antiphospholipid syndrome; Cognitive impairment; Depression

İçgörü basitçe kişinin kendi iç dünyasını ve sorunlarını anlama kapasitesi olarak tanımlanabilir.... more İçgörü basitçe kişinin kendi iç dünyasını ve sorunlarını anlama kapasitesi olarak tanımlanabilir. İçgörü sözlük anlamında; ayırt etme, anlayış ve bilgelik (Oxford English Dictionary 2000), 1) bir şeye verilen görme yetisi, 2) ruhsal görüş ya da anlayış, 3) teknik anlamları: a. psikolojik olarak çözümü hızla kavrama, biçimsel öğrenme, b. bireyin kendisini diğerlerinin gördüğü gibi görebilmesi, kendilik bilgisi, c. psikiyatrideki özgül anlamı: hasta kişinin ruhsal bir hastalığı olduğunu bilmesidir. (The Oxford American College Dictionary 2002). Jaspers psikiyatride içgörüyü klinik olarak tanımlayan ilk klinik araştırıcılardan biridir, içgörüyü günümüzde yerleşmiş anlamı ile bir bütün olarak hastalığının farkında olma, hastalığının belirtilerinin farkında olma olarak tanımlamıştır. Jaspers'e göre psikotik hastalarda içgörü geçici olarak görülebilir, hastalar bazı durumlarda hezeyan ya da varsanılarının gerçekdışı olduğunu fark edebilir, ancak bu sadece bir süre içindir sonra tekrar bu farkındalıklarını yitirirler (Jaspers 1913.

Clozapine is a well-known drug that is used in treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but granulocyto... more Clozapine is a well-known drug that is used in treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but granulocytopenia, which may lead to a potentially fatal condition such as agranulocytosis, limit its use. The question about which antipsychotic should be used after a diagnosis of clozapineassociated granulocytopenia is difficult to answer, because antipsychotics other than clozapine may also have hematologic toxicity, or they may prolong clozapine-associated granulocytopenia. In this study, we aimed to find out the incidence of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia in our treatment sample and discuss suitable antipsychotic drug options in terms of hematologic toxicity, for management of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia.

ABSTRACT Introduction: Anger plays a major role in psychodermatological diseases. Researchers ha... more ABSTRACT
Introduction: Anger plays a major role in psychodermatological diseases. Researchers have reported that anger and other psychological factors play a role in the etiology of chronic urticaria. This study aimed to examine symptoms of anger, anger-related behavioral patterns, thoughts associated with anger, situations that cause anger and experiences of interpersonal anger in patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU). The authors hypothesized that patients with CSU react to more situations with anger and experience more anger symptoms as compared to alopecia areata (AA) patients and healthy controls.
Methods: The cohort study population consisted of literate adult patients aged \65 years that were diagnosed with CSU at the outpatient dermatology clinics of Bas ̧ kent and Gazi University, Ankara, Turkey, between September 2011 and October 2012. The first control group included individuals without any physical or mental disorders and the second one included literate adult patients diagnosed with AA. The patients and controls were matched according to age, gender, and level of education. A sociodemographic data form, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and Multi-Dimensional Anger Inventory were administered to the participants. Data were analyzed using SPSS v.17.0 for Windows. The primary outcome was to determine whether there was a relationship between anger and
CSU.
Results: The CSU group consisted of 30 participants; AA group consisted of 30 participants; and the healthy group consisted of 39 participants. Anxiety and depression scores in the CSU group were significantly higher than those in the healthy control group. Symptoms of anger, situations that cause anger, and thoughts associated with anger were significantly more common in the CSU group compared to AA group and healthy group. Conclusion: More of the CSU patients were observed to respond with excessive anger to most situations, to have high levels of anxiety anger and passive aggressive interpersonal relationships.

Purpose: Epilepsy is an extremely widespread and serious neurological disease. Although comorbidi... more Purpose: Epilepsy is an extremely widespread and serious neurological disease. Although comorbidities of psychiatric disorders are prevalent in epilepsy patients, quite often this coexistence could be overlooked. Studies in this area demonstrated that depression, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia are the most common psychiatric disorders accompanying epilepsy. Mental health problems are known to be more common in prisoners compared to general population. The present study aims to demonstrate the psychiatric comorbidities in prisoners diagnosed with epilepsy.
Method: In this study, demographic data and the psychiatric comorbidity of 200 patients who were diagnosed with epilepsy by a neurologist at Ankara Penal Institution Campus State Hospital between January 2013 and January 2014 were analyzed retrospectively.
Results: The mean age of study population was 32.6 10.1 years. 181 of these patients were male (90.5%). 81 of 200 patients (40.5%) had a comorbid psychiatric disorder. The most common comorbid psychiatric disorders were depression (18.5%), anxiety (11%), and personality disorders (11%), respectively. Conclusion: The most common psychiatric comorbid disorders among prisoners diagnosed with epilepsy were depression and anxiety as general population with epilepsy whereas some disorders, personality disorder, substance dependence and bipolar affective disorders, were found to be more common among prisoners compared to the general population with epilepsy. It is crucial to question psychiatric symptoms and comorbidities while evaluating the patients with epilepsy, especially among prisoners.

Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 2011

Subjects: One thousand five hundred twenty-four schizophrenia patients, treated with clozapine, were included in the study.

Australasian Psychiatry, 2014

Objective: Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder that usually manifests as ar... more Objective: Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder that usually manifests as arterial or venous thromboembolic events and recurrent spontaneous abortions. As the disease affects many organs by obstructing the small vessels, it can present with a variety of symptoms. Neuropsychiatric symptoms are rarely the first to be observed. This report describes the case of a woman with no known disease who presented at a psychiatric outpatient clinic with aversion and cognitive impairment and was diagnosed with APS. Conclusion: It is important to bear autoimmune diseases in mind when evaluating young adults with complicated symptoms at psychiatric outpatient clinics.
Keywords: Antiphospholipid syndrome; Cognitive impairment; Depression

Clozapine is a well-known drug that is used in treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but granulocyto... more Clozapine is a well-known drug that is used in treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but granulocytopenia, which may lead to a potentially fatal condition such as agranulocytosis, limit its use. The question about which antipsychotic should be used after a diagnosis of clozapineassociated granulocytopenia is difficult to answer, because antipsychotics other than clozapine may also have hematologic toxicity, or they may prolong clozapine-associated granulocytopenia. In this study, we aimed to find out the incidence of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia in our treatment sample and discuss suitable antipsychotic drug options in terms of hematologic toxicity, for management of clozapine-associated granulocytopenia.